It's Time
by fangirl-level4000
Summary: Jace is a professional mixed martial artist and Clary is a freelance photographer. When Isabelle convinces Clary to go watch her new boyfriend Simon fight one night, Clary's life will never be the same. AU/All Human some fluff
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Mortal Instruments or any of its characters.**

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><p>"Come on, Clary," my best friend Isabelle yelled from her room in our shared apartment. "Will you please go to the fight with me?"<p>

I grimaced at her words and exited my room to meet her in our living room on the couch. "I don't understand why you would want to go watch two guys kick the crap out of each other," I complained.

"Because, little girl, it's hot and we might meet some tough fighter boys in the process." I cringed at her nickname for me. Isabelle was a good six inches taller than me, standing at five feet and nine inches, while I was a short five-three.

"I don't know if I can handle it, Iz. Just go without me or, better yet, take someone else."

"Clary, you're going. I don't care if I have to drag you kicking and screaming. Now, go get dressed because we're leaving in twenty minutes."

I grunted as she pulled me up off the couch and smacked my butt as I walked past. What was I even supposed to wear to watch cage fights anyway? Ripping through my closet, I finally settled on a dark purple, strapless dress that hit just above my knees. I paired it with strappy black wedges that I knew Isabelle would approve of and pulled my bright red hair into a messy bun with a few pieces left out to frame my face. With just a hint of trepidation, I walked out to the living room again to see Isabelle all dolled up as usual and completely blowing me out of the park.

"How the hell do you do that," I asked in frustration. "You look like you just stepped off the runway and I'm over here in my plain dress and shoes looking like I shouldn't even be allowed to breathe the same air as you."

"Oh, quit your complaining, the car is here."

Isabelle led me down the stairs from our apartment to the taxi waiting outside. We slid in the backseat and Isabelle gave the driver the address to the arena we were going to. I don't know what I was expecting, but the arena was packed full of eager spectators. We took our seats, which were a little too close to the cage for my comfort and waited for the festivities to begin. I looked over at Isabelle who was nearly jumping out of her skin and shook my head as I laughed at her behavior.

"Remind me again how you got tickets to this thing and how we're so close."

"I know a guy," she said waving me off.

"Know a guy? As in dating a guy?"

"If you must know, yes, Clarissa. I'm dating a guy. His name is Simon Lewis. He trains in town and I met him a few weeks ago at work."

Isabelle was a photographer for a sports magazine so she was always getting prime tickets to events and games in the area. More often than not, she dragged me along with her claiming I could meet my future husband. I worked as a freelance photographer and specialized in landscape photography, though I had been known to shoot the occasional wedding or family if I was desperate for a job. My job sent me all over the world and I shot the most beautiful places in the world.

I looked at Isabelle with a look of pity for the poor guy she was dating now. I knew how she was. She would string this guy along for a few months, make him fall deeply in love with her and then, at the first sign of something serious, she would cut him loose without a second glance. Sometimes I wondered how we had found each other. We met in a sports photography class in college and immediately became friends. Even now, after four years, I couldn't imagine my life without her. We complimented each other. She pushed me outside my comfort zone, like making me go to a cage fight and I reigned her in just a little, like the time she was convinced she could get me to jump out of a plane. I was all for trying new things, but that was where I drew the line. So, I let her drag me to weird sporting events that I paid no attention to and she let me take her to fine dining restaurants and eat weird foods she would never had tried otherwise.

"Oh, it's starting," she squealed in my ear. "Simon is supposed to be in the third fight."

"How can you be excited to watch your boyfriend fight some guy who wants to hurt him," I asked.

"Like I said, it's hot."

"You are a strange human being."

"Come on, Clary. You haven't had a boyfriend since that jerk Sebastian broke your heart in college and that was three years ago. You need to put yourself out there again and find someone you like spending time with. I'm not saying you need to fall in love or anything, but it might be nice to hang out with someone and have some fun."

I knew she was right. My boyfriend in college, Sebastian, wasn't the greatest guy, but I had known him since I was fifteen and thought he was still the guy I knew in high school who told me I was the most beautiful girl in the world. That all changed when I caught him with another girl at a party three years ago. It completely tore me to shreds and I hadn't been able to open up to a man since. Isabelle had a point. I couldn't keep tagging along with her for the rest of my life. Not all men were like my jackass of an ex-boyfriend. I just needed to put myself out there.

_TNT_ by ACDC rang through the speakers of the arena and our eyes shot to the tunnel where Simon was exiting toward the cage with all of the people who would be standing in his corner flanking his sides. Isabelle jumped up and started cheering for him as he made his way toward us. Simon's face was stoic and I could tell he was trying to remain focused, but when he saw Isabelle, a smile broke out on his face before he quickly regained focus and entered the octagon. He ran around the cage once before ending up in his corner and bouncing around, shaking out his arms and legs as his song ended and his opponents began to play.

Once the other fighter was in the cage and the introductions had been made, the referee called the two fighters into the center. "Alright, this is a no holds barred fight," he explained. "We've been over the rules touch gloves and get back to your corners." Simon touched gloves with the other man and backtracked to his corner. The referee pointed at Simon. "Are you ready?" Simon nodded and the referee pointed at the other fighter. "Are you ready?" Another nod and he clapped his hands together giving them the signal to start the fight. "Let's get in on! Let's go!"

Simon and his opponent bounced to the center of the octagon and circled each other before Simon threw the first punch. The other man ducked and came up to connect a right hook directly to Simon's temple, which rocked him a little bit before he regained his footing and raised his hands again.

"Holy shit," Isabelle shrieked as she slumped down in her seat and covered her eyes. "Did you see that?"

"Yeah, I was almost sure he was going to be out," I yelled down at her. Surprisingly, in the last couple of fights, I had gotten into it. I was suddenly yelling at the fighters and cheering them on, despite the amount of blood that spattered the mat. I realized that it really was a discipline that these men had to perfect. It wasn't just a bunch of guys throwing punches hoping to hurt one another.

"You were right. I don't know why I was excited. I don't want to see him get hurt." She yelped as Simon got rocked again by an uppercut to his jaw. Simon fell to the ground and the other man fell on top of him raining punches and elbows to the side of his head until the referee finally stepped in to stop the fight. "Dammit. I don't know if I can handle watching him get beat up like that all the time. I thought he was supposed to be good. This fight was supposed to give him a shot at the title."

"I don't really know anything about the sport, Iz, but maybe he was just off tonight. You know better than anyone that it sometimes happens to best athletes. Are you planning on seeing him tonight?"

"Yeah, we were supposed to go out and celebrate later, but now I don't know. He did give me this pass that will let me back to the staging area."

"Then, go to him. I'll be fine. I can find a way back home, so don't worry about me." She threw her arms around me before getting up to leave.

"Thanks, Clary and I'm sorry I dragged you along with me. I know you don't necessarily like sports."

I waved her off. "Don't worry about it. I actually had fun."

She ran down the aisle and headed for a door that said "Fighters and Staff Only." I sat back in my seat ready to watch the rest of the fights for the night. I was quickly learning the rules and what most of the moves were called because I was seated so close to the corners and could hear coaches and training partners yelling at the fighters. When it was announced that the last fight of the night was about to begin, I sat up straighter in my seat.

The first fighter exited the tunnel and made his way to the cage. He got situated and his song ended, just like all the other fighters that night. Then, the reigning champion's song started to play and my eyes darted to the tall man walking toward the cage. He was mouthing the words to _Dammit_ by Blink 182 as he bobbed his head to the beat. The man had to be at least a foot taller than me and he had hair that looked like it had baked to a golden crisp in the sun. When he removed his shirt for inspection before he entered the cage, I saw that he had several tattoos on his chest, back and arms. He looked strong with his muscular physique and he shook hands and hugged every member of his crew before climbing the steps to the octagon. The crowd erupted in cheers when he waved his arms around from his corner. The announcer came to the center of the octagon and began rattling of statistics about the challenger. Finally, he pointed toward the golden boy's corner.

"Introducing second," the announcer yelled. "Fighting out of the red corner. This man is a mixed martial artist with a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He is fighting out of Los Angeles California and has a record of ten wins and zero losses. The undisputed middleweight champion of the world, Jace 'The Angel' Herondale!"

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Let me know if you'd like me to continue! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

I watched as Jace "The Angel" Herondale kicked, punched and choked his way to victory. In the end, his arm was raised and the championship belt was placed around his waist.

As I was gathering my belongings and mapping out a plan to get home, my phone rang with a text message from Isabelle.

**_We're going to a party. You're going so don't even try to say you're not. Meet us outside._**

I decided it was best just to give in and go meet Isabelle. Maybe I could convince her that I was exhausted and needed to go home or maybe I had suddenly come down with the flu. I met Isabelle in front of the arena and she pulled me into a hug.

"Clary, I want you to meet Simon," she said as she pulled away and pointed to the man with shaggy brown hair and a black eye.

"It's nice to meet you, Simon," I said shaking his hand politely.

"Sorry you had to watch me get my ass kicked," he said with a shy smile. "I was a little off tonight."

"Oh, it was no problem. I actually enjoyed coming tonight." I turned to Isabelle. "Listen, Iz."

"No, don't even think about it," she said putting her hand up to silence me. "When was the last time you went out and had fun?" I shrugged. "Exactly, so get your little ass in that car and prepare to have some fun.

"You're awful."

"But you love me."

Twenty minutes later, we were entering a club and being escorted to a private room where more fighters were hanging out. I looked around the room and immediately felt out of place. Most of the women looked like they should be on a stage dancing or well, like Isabelle. Izzy didn't look out of place at all as she sauntered into the room on Simon's arm.

I chose to sit down on one of the plush couches that lined the wall and order a drink. I sat with my fruity drink in hand as I observed my surroundings. It vaguely reminded me of a high school party except for the fact that most of these people could kill me with one punch or pay off all my student loans without thinking twice. I was just about to get up to find Isabelle and tell her I was going to leave when a voice snapped me back to reality.

"Hey, Red," the voice said and I looked up to see the angel, himself. "What are you doing here all alone?"

"Umm," I said unintelligibly as I searched the room for Isabelle. "My friend dragged me here with her boyfriend."

"Huh, well, I'm Jace. Do you mind if I sit?" He pointed to the empty spot on the couch beside me and I shrugged. "Did you watch the fights?"

"Yeah, actually, I didn't think I would enjoy it as much as I did."

"I get that reaction a lot. Most people think it's such a violent sport before they actually sit down and watch it. It's so much more than two people wanting to rip each other's heads off. We have to train for years to be able to do the things we do and there's a lot of respect to be earned and given."

"You sound like you really love it. I mean, you wouldn't be the undisputed champion if you weren't."

"I do love it. I take it you know who I am?" He turned slightly so he was facing me more head on.

"I didn't until I saw you fight tonight. It was a really great fight, by the way."

"Thanks." He faced away from me for a second and I decided to take my leave and finally find Isabelle.

"Well, I better get going. It's getting late." I stood up from the couch, but Jace grabbed my arm to stop me. I turned to face him and he stood from the couch towering over me.

"Wait, you didn't tell me your name."

"Oh, it's Clary. Clary Fray."

"Well, Clary Fray, it was nice meeting you and talking to you. Maybe I'll see you around some time?"

"I doubt it. It was nice meeting you, too Jace."

With that, I freed myself from his grasp, but couldn't ignore the heat that spread throughout my body at his touch. I would probably never see him again and that was going to have to be okay with me. Finally, I found Isabelle on the dance floor and pulled her to the side.

"I'm going to go, Iz," I yelled over the music.

"Wait, didn't I just see you talking to Jace," she asked.

"It doesn't matter. I'm tired and I'm going home. Will I see you later?"

"I don't know. I'll text you if I won't be home tonight."

"Okay, have fun." I hugged her goodbye and went outside to wait for a cab.

I was standing on the sidewalk outside the club when a sleek black SUV pulled up in front of me and lowered the window.

"Get in, Red," Jace said with a smile and a wave of his hand. "I'll give you a ride home."

"Oh, no," I refused. "I'll be fine. I'll just wait for a cab. Thank you, though."

"Come on. A cab could take hours, especially on a night like this. I promise I'm not a serial killer or anything."

I hesitated a second longer before opening the passenger door and stepping into his car.

"Thank you, I don't live that far."

"It's not a problem. I needed to get out of there anyway. It's not really my scene. I just go to make my best friend happy."

"Who's your best friend?"

"Simon Lewis."

"No way. That's my best friend's boyfriend. He's the one who got us tickets tonight."

He glanced at me with a smirk. "I always knew being friends with that guy would get me somewhere." I tried my best to keep my eyes on the road, but I kept looking his way. I tried to stop myself from studying him and trying to memorize every small detail. "Here we are."

Jace pulled up outside my apartment building and ran around the car to open my door. He offered his hand and helped me down from the car. I started walking up the stairs to the second floor to my door and noticed Jace was still right beside me.

"You didn't have to walk me," I said when we reached my door.

"I know, but I wanted to," Jace said as I fumbled with my keys to unlock the door. Once I finally got the door open, I looked back at him with a smile.

"Well, thanks again for giving me a ride." I stepped into the apartment, but Jace stopped me again.

"Wait, Red. Will I see you again?" I didn't want to shut him down again and my mind immediately went to Sebastian. I had been burned, badly and I didn't want that to happen again, but Jace seemed different. He left the party and gave me a ride home. He didn't make me feel uncomfortable, in fact, I had known him for about an hour and I already felt more comfortable with him than I did with most people. Then, I thought back to earlier that night and my decision to put myself out there again. Maybe this was my chance to find someone who enjoyed my company as much as I enjoyed theirs.

"Maybe," I replied with a smile as I turned to enter my apartment.

"I'll be training tomorrow at my gym. You should come by. Maybe I could show you a few moves."

"Oh, I bet you would like that."

"I would actually. Can I have your number?" I handed him my phone and he eagerly entered his phone number and called his phone so he had my number. "I'll call you with the address."

I nodded and turned to my apartment one final time and he let me go this time. "Bye, Jace and thank you."

"Bye, Clary."

Less than ten minutes after I finally fell into bed, my phone chimed with a text message.

**_I really hope you come by tomorrow. I had a really great time tonight. Sweet dreams, Red._**

o.O.0.O.o

When I woke up the next morning, I had two messages from Jace. One had the address of his gym and the other simply said "Good Morning." My mind was running a mile a minute and I couldn't think straight. This wasn't supposed to happen. I knew I had decided to put myself out there again, but I hadn't planned on doing it with a professional MMA fighter. I really needed to talk to Isabelle and I could hear the TV in the living room, so I went looking for her. She was sitting on the couch with her cup of morning coffee in her hand.

"Hey," I greeted as I walked into the kitchen to get myself a cup of coffee. "I didn't think you would be home already."

"Yeah, Simon had to be to the gym pretty early this morning," she explained. "He had some meetings with his coaches to watch tape of the fight and map out a game plan for the next fight."

"Did you stay here last night?"

"No, I just got back. What's up, Clary?"

"I really need to talk to you."

"Okay, so talk."

"Okay, so last night I decided to take your advice and just let myself have fun. I was sitting on a couch in the club and Jace Herondale sat down next to me."

"So, I did see you talking to him? That man is one fine specimen. I'm proud of you."

"Will you let me finish?" She nodded and I continued. "I was waiting outside for a cab and he pulled up and offered me a ride. He gave me a ride home and walked me to the door. I gave him my number and he invited me to the gym today."

"Are you kidding me?" I gave her a confused look. "You decide to have fun and Jace Herondale just falls into your lap. Wait, I don't understand. What's the problem?"

"You said it yourself, Iz. He's Jace 'The Angel' Herondale. I don't know if he's the right person to put myself out there with. I don't want to get hurt."

"Look, Clary, Jace is Simon's best friend. I've met him a few times and I can tell you that he's different. Most of the guys in this sport are players, but I've never seen Jace leave a party after midnight and he's always alone. Maybe you need to take a chance. Who knows, he could be the one to break you out of your shell. Go to that gym today and start living your life."

I hugged Isabelle and got up from the couch with a confidence I hadn't had since before college. I showered and changed into leggings and a tank top. I put makeup on and lined my eyes with dark purple eyeliner to enhance my green eyes. My hair fell in its natural curls and I grabbed my purse and phone.

"Have fun," Isabelle yelled after me as I walked out the door.

I punched the address into my phone and followed the directions to the gym while I blasted music in my car. Fifteen minutes later, I pulled up outside Jace's gym. I sat and stared at the front door for what felt like years before I took a deep breath and got out of my car. I pushed the front door open to see ten mats thrown down for sparring and punching bags lining the back wall. There was an octagon in the back corner and I saw Simon sitting in a chair watching some of the guys train. I stood in the entryway for a few minutes before I saw him walk out of an office and look up at me. A devilishly handsome smile crept across his face and his golden eyes shone.

"Hey, Red."

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the chapter. As for updates, I will update as soon as the next chapter is ready, which means it could be tomorrow or a week from now. Although, I tend to get inspired randomly and bust out a few chapter time. Anyways, thanks for reading and let me know what you think! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

"Hey, Red."

_Deep breathes_. I smiled at him as he made his way toward me.

"Hi," I said sheepishly. "I just thought I would come by and say hi. I can see that you're busy, so I'll just be on my way."

I turned to leave, but, once again, Jace stopped me. "Don't be silly, Red. I was just putting together some tape for Simon to watch. How about I give you a tour?"

"Okay, that sounds nice."

"Great." Jace smiled and turned placing his hand on my back as he led me around the gym. "So, basically we train a lot of Brazilian jiu jitsu here. I would say that would be the base for most fighters. Either that or wrestling. A lot of fighters actually start off wrestling and then move on to BJJ. They compliment each other really nicely because BJJ doesn't teach takedowns, but wrestling does. Anyway, so we have classes on the mats everyday for kids and adults. Other than that, our fighters who train here have free reign of the facility including the practice octagon. We have locker rooms and a weight room with a sauna in the back."

We walked around the gym as Jace pointed out what he was talking about and then he led me to his office. The walls were lined with pictures of him each time he won the belt. He had several pictures with his training partners and there was one of him and Simon along with a few other people in front of the building we were currently standing in.

"So, what do you think," Jace asked hesitantly as he leaned against his desk.

"I think it's really amazing, Jace," I told him truthfully. "Your passion shines through everything you've put together here."

"Thanks." He smiled proudly. "So, I'm sure you don't want to hang around a sweaty gym and watch a bunch of guys train. Why don't we go grab something to eat?"

"That sounds great."

We exited the office and Jace grabbed his keys. Simon noticed us leaving and yelled out at us.

"Seriously, you get to leave," he asked Jace.

"Yeah, because I won my fight last night and I'm the boss," Jace explained.

"Low blow, bro. Fine, go have fun, but I'll have you know that I left a beautiful girl this morning because you said I had to be here and now you're leaving."

"Said beautiful girl is my best friend," I said with a slight giggle. "Don't worry, Simon. She understands."

"Just go watch yourself get your ass kicked and I'll be back later. We'll talk about your next fight and work out a training plan."

Without another word, Jace and I turned to leave.

Twenty minutes later, we were sitting outside IN-n-Out with our food. Well, I sat outside with my food while Jace sat with his feast. Jace had two four-by-four burgers, two orders of fries and a chocolate milkshake. I looked at him bewildered and he just shrugged as he dug into his food.

"I had to cut weight to be able to fight last night," he explained. "I haven't had a real meal in four days."

"You cut weight? Isn't that dangerous?"

"It is if you do it the wrong way. I don't like the way most guys do it so I don't fight in a weight class that I won't be healthy in. I really only cut weight as a precaution. I walk around at my weight class cut off, so I don't want to get to weigh-ins and not make weight. Since I only have to loose a couple of pounds, it's not like I'm starving myself, but I do have to skip a couple meals."

"Huh, interesting." I ate a couple of fries and he was already done with his first burger.

"You're a photographer, right?" I nodded. "What is your favorite thing to shoot?"

"I've done some underwater shoots before and those were cool, but I think my favorite things to shoot are just people in their everyday lives. I was on assignment once in Africa for a safari shoot and we were spending some downtime in a village. I just sat back and shot pictures of the people without them knowing. I got this one shot of a mother and her daughter looking on toward the dad and son of the family and captured their expressions perfectly. They were filled with such adoration for them, but were also terrified that they would never see them again."

"Wow, that sounds amazing."

"It's not my specialty, landscapes are, but I think I would eventually like to switch specialties and open a studio. I love my job and I get to go to some amazing places, but there comes a time in life when you want to settle down and make a name for yourself. I think it might be that time."

"I know what you're talking about. When I opened the gym, I had just won my first title. I know that my fighting career can be taken away in a second. Injuries are so common in this sport and most are career ending. I watched a buddy of mine snap his leg a few months ago and I don't think he'll ever make it back to the way he was. He was probably the greatest fighter the sport had ever or will ever see." I was beginning to notice that Jace tended to go off on tangents when he talked about the sport he loved. It was pretty adorable. "Anyway, I wanted to build a legacy. If I suddenly had to stop fighting tomorrow, I know that I can at least help other people reach their goals."

Jace finished off his fries and started on his milkshake tipping the cup toward me in offering. I shook my head and we sat in silence for a moment.

"You said you teach kids during the week."

"Yes, I did. I love it. The kids are so awesome and they really look up to us. It's probably one of the more rewarding things I do."

"Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"Um, no. My parents died when I was sixteen so I moved out here with about twenty dollars in my pocket and a GED."

"Oh my God, that's amazing."

"It wasn't so impressive for a while. I got into some pretty rough situations until my coach found me and took me in. He gave me a place to stay and started training me. I fell in love with the sport immediately and by the time I was eighteen, I had won my first professional fight."

I was speechless. How could this boy, who had gone through so much come out on the other side and be so successful. He was one of those people who you couldn't help but admire. I was a completely normal person. I lived a normal life, had normal parents and friends. I couldn't even imagine going through what Jace had been through. Suddenly, I found myself wanting to know more about him and I had a feeling it would never be enough. I wanted to spend more time with him and tell him everything about my day. I wanted him to teach me about what he loved to do and I wanted to show him what I loved.

"Sorry, Red. I don't usually tell people about that stuff. It's kind of a downer and I don't want people feeling sorry for me. I got to where I am by sheer force of will and I don't want to change that."

"Don't be sorry, Jace. Thank you for telling me. It honestly makes me admire you so much more."

Jace dropped his head and fiddled his fingers before looking back up at me. He reached his hand across the table and took my hand in his. He ran his thumb over my knuckles and I shivered as he smiled. We walked back to his car hand in hand and drove back to the gym.

Jace stood outside my car for what seemed like hours before he spoke. "Listen, Clary. I have had a really great time getting to know you. I'm over the moon that you actually came here today. I guess what I'm trying to say is, will you go out with me this weekend?"

I kept my head down for a moment and pretended that I need to think about my answer. When I finally looked up and into his eyes, I smiled.

"I mean, I'll have to check my schedule," his expression dropped and I stifled a laugh. "Yes, Jace. I'll go out with you this weekend." He pulled me into his arms and I thought he was going to kiss me, but when we finally pulled apart, Jace looked back toward the gym.

"Alright, the kids' class is about to start and I can't miss it." He looked back to me. "I'll call you about this weekend."

"Sounds great. I'll talk to you later." With that, I turned back to my car and he entered the gym to start his class.

Later that night, I was sitting in bed working on some photos that needed to be handed in by the weekend. I was doing a travel piece on Scotland and Ireland for a local magazine and had spent three weeks in the countries taking photos of the countryside and historical towns. As I was putting the final touches on the photos and preparing to send them off, my phone rang and I saw Jace's name flash across my screen. I swiped the screen to answer.

"Hello," I greeted.

"Hey, Red," Jace said. "Is it bad that I called you the same day?" I looked over to the clock on my nightstand.

"Well, technically it's not the same day."

"Oh, shit. Is it really that late? I'm sorry, I'll just call you back in the morning."

"No, Jace, it's fine. I would have been up for another hour or so anyway. Don't worry. What's up?"

"Will it sound lame to say that I just wanted to talk to you?"

I stifled a laugh. "A little bit."

"Then, I won't say that and will say that I wanted to see if you would be willing to take pictures at the gym tomorrow for me."

"I don't know, Jace. Isabelle is the sports photographer. Maybe you should ask her."

"I'm not looking for a sports photographer. I don't want pictures of the actions. We have plenty of those. I want pictures of the emotions that we experience when we are doing the things we love."

"Wow, okay then. I'll come by tomorrow and see what I can do." I tried to hide my yawn, but Jace heard it.

"Alright, Red. Go to sleep."

"Goodnight, Jace. See you tomorrow."

"Goodnight, Clary."

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! Leave a review and let me know what you think! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

The gym was in full swing as I walked in the next day. I lugged two giant bags with three cameras and all my equipment. I dropped the bags by the practice octagon and just observed for a few minutes. Jace was still in his office, I assumed, so I noticed all the people training on the mats. Simon was rolling around with a much larger man and finally go on top of him to make him tap out. His eye was still swollen and the colors looked like they had darkened since I had last seen him. Along with Simon, there were about ten more fighters training their jiu jitsu on the mats until Jace emerged from his office and whistled to get their attention.

"Alright, ladies," he yelled. "Everybody up. Start running." There were groans coming from the group as they all stood up and began running around the perimeter of the gym. Jace spotted me and started my way. "Did you bring enough stuff, Red?" He smirked.

"I didn't know which camera would work best in here," I explained as he put an arm around my shoulder and led me toward the mats. "What exactly do you want me to shoot? Are there certain people I should be focusing on?"

"Just take the pictures you want to take. I'm sure they'll be amazing." I nodded and Jace looked back toward the guys running around the gym. "Okay, so I'm going to get over there. I'll talk to you later."

Jace jogged over to the back of the line and ran another lap with the guys as I set up my cameras and equipment. Before I knew it, I was really getting into this project. I was lying on my belly to get the best angles and capturing mostly the faces of the fighters training. I noticed Simon standing by the wall and snapped a shot of his bruised eye as he looked onto his friends training. I thought I had taken my favorite picture of the day when all the guys were taking a break and I caught a shot of Simon tackling Jace and the look on Jace's face was priceless. That was until I saw something that most people wouldn't have noticed. Jace was standing against a wall watching as everyone drilled. Two guys were grappling on the mats and Jace closed his eyes for a second. I snapped a shot. When he opened them again, one of the guys on the mat was able to get the other in an arm bar and force submission. When he tapped his hand on the other guy's arm, Jace's mouth twitched with amusement and his golden eyes lit up to look like two suns that lit the sky. I snapped another shot. I looked down at the digital preview screen on my camera and smiled inwardly. I couldn't wait to get the shot up on a computer screen to see if I actually captured that moment when Jace's face lit up as he watched his friends and the sport he loves.

I decided not to wait and ran over to my bag to get my laptop out. I sat on the floor against the cage of the practice octagon, took the memory card out of my camera and put it in the laptop to upload all the pictures I had just taken. Jace called out that it was time to start cleaning up and get ready for the kids classes that night. I looked up and couldn't believe I had spent the entire day there. Jace walked toward me and plopped down next to me nudging my shoulder with his.

"What are you doing, Red," he asked looking over my shoulder.

"I couldn't wait to go through the pictures," I explained. "And I figured you might want to look at them, too."

He nodded and I pulled up the photo of Simon's profile up close. He had this determined look on his face and his bruised eyed added a pop of color to the hot. "Wow, that's an amazing picture."

"Not yet." I clicked on a few buttons to adjust the picture. "If I adjust the contrast and increase the focus on Simon," I paused, "there, now it's an amazing picture."

The adjustments I made, made the bruise darker and everything around Simon blurred. It drew the focus the look on Simon's face rather than what was happening around him. I looked at Jace as he examined the edited version of the shot. He finally smiled and looked me in the eyes.

"You truly are talented, Clary." I shook my head and looked back at my computer screen saving the edited shot to a new folder for Jace. "Can I see some more?"

I nodded and started scrolling through the shots on the screen. When I came to the picture of Jace, he grabbed my hand and stopped me. Immediately, I felt embarrassed. I felt like some sort of stalker and like I had invaded his privacy. That picture documented a private moment when Jace was inside his own mind.

"I'm sorry," I whispered. He remained silent for another moment.

"Don't be sorry." His hand came to cup my cheek and turn my face toward his. Before I could say anything, he brought my mouth to his and I closed my eyes. He pulled away too soon and pressed our foreheads together. "You did it. You captured exactly how I feel about MMA. I don't know how you did it, but you did."

I was having a hard time forming words with Jace's hand still on my cheek and his forehead against mine. I finally whispered, "Jace." He pulled away abruptly and curled in on himself.

"I'm sorry," he said shaking his head. "I shouldn't have kissed you."

"No." I lifted the laptop of my lap and set it on the ground in front of me. I moved around to face Jace and place my hands on the sides of his face. "I wanted you to kiss me. Don't be sorry about that, ever."

"Clary, I haven't felt like this in a very long time. I've known you for three days and I already can't imagine not spending time with you."

"I know. I feel it, too, but I've been burned in the past, Jace and I haven't been able to trust anyone other than Isabelle since. I want to trust you."

"You can. Let me prove it to you." Instead of answering, I leaned forward and kissed him again and he deepened the kiss. Catcalls and cheers came from the direction of the doors as the fighters entered the gym after their break. I pulled away and laughed. "Do you want to hang out after classes?"

I nodded. "Come by my apartment when you're done." I gave him one more kiss before I gathered my equipment and bags to leave. Jace grabbed my arm as I turned toward the door and pulled me against him with a smile on his face. "Jace, the kids are starting to come in. You need to go." I laughed as he shook his head and dipped his head to kiss me. I pushed him away. "I'm serious, go."

"Ugh, fine. I'll see you later." As I exited the gym, I could hear the sounds of clapping as Jace walked toward his friends. "Shut up and get everything ready for these classes. I don't want to be here later than we need to be."

I couldn't wipe the goofy grin off of my face as I drove to my apartment. Isabelle was sitting on the couch watching some entertainment news show when I walked in the door. I dropped my bags by the door and flopped down on the couch next to her.

"Why the hell are you so happy," she asked.

"Let's just say he's six-foot-two and has the most beautiful eyes in the world," I said with that stupid grin still plastered on my face.

"Oh my God, I knew it!" I laughed. "What happened? I thought you were just taking pictures for him."

"I was, but then I was showing him some of the photos and he kissed me." She squealed and I had to cover my ears. "Iz, I haven't felt this way in so long and it feels so good."

"I told you he liked you."

"You said no such thing."

"I did in my head. Anyways, so what does this mean?"

"I don't know yet. He's coming over after classes." I looked at her shyly. "Do you think you could make yourself scarce?"

"Are my ears deceiving me? Is Clarissa Fray asking for the apartment for the night?"

"Oh shut up. You don't have to leave and nothing is going to happen. We're just hanging out."

"Right, okay. Whatever you say." I tossed a pillow at her and her incessant giggling. Before long I was joining her. Man, this felt good. I couldn't remember the last time that I had laughed and smiled so much. Isabelle was right. I needed this. I needed to find someone to bring me out of my shell and enjoy my time with. "What if I invite Simon over and we can all have a movie night or something?"

"You really like him don't you?"

"I really do, Clary."

"Can you do something for me then?" She raised her eyebrows in question. "Can you give him a chance?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean, Iz. You date a guy for a few months, make him fall in love with you and then cut him loose. Simon really likes you and I'm not sure if he can handle an Isabelle Lightwood heartbreak."

"He's a professional fighter, Clary. He gets beat up for a living. I think he can handle a little heartbreak."

"Why? Why would you want to break his heart if you claim to like him so much?"

"Because it's easier to be the heartbreaker than the heartbroken." She lowered her head in shame. "I'm scared. I know I act all tough and strong, but my worst fear is getting my heart broken, so I end it before that can happen."

"Hon," I said wrapping my arms around her. "You need to take some of your own advice. You told me that I needed to let my guard down and look at me know. I don't want you to regret anything one day and I think if you break things off with Simon, you'll regret it."

"I know, but what if I let myself fall in love and get hurt in the end?"

"That's a risk you have to take. Would you rather take a chance on love and have it be the best thing you ever did or never take a chance and regret it the rest of your life?"

"When did you become so wise?"

"I'm just seeing life in a whole new light lately." The ridiculous smile made another appearance.

"And would that light be the light of an angel?" She smiled and I could feel my face light up.

"Maybe it is."

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading and all your kind words! I hope you're enjoying the story so far. Let me know what you think and leave a review! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

These were the moments I had come to love. Jace and I sat on the couch in my apartment as I worked on my laptop and he watched whatever fights were being televised that night. I closed my computer, set it on the coffee table and curled into Jace's side. It had been a month since Jace first kissed me and we had fallen into a nice rhythm. When I wasn't on assignment, I spent time shooting at the gym because it had really become one of my favorite places to shoot. Jace spent most of the time he wasn't at the gym with me at my apartment. He had some more of his fighters getting fights, so I would go along with him and Isabelle would come because Simon was there, too.

"Hey, Red," Jace said as he pulled me closer to him.

"Hmmm." My eyes were getting heavy and I was having a hard time staying awake. I knew Jace would carry me to bed if I fell asleep, which happened most nights because I didn't want my time with him to end.

"You're falling asleep."

"No, I'm not." I adjusted, curling into him and draping an arm across his stomach. "I'm watching this fight. That guy just tried to get a choke and lost it."

"Look at you. You're learning." He laughed and kissed the top of my head. "But really, you should probably go to bed and I should probably get going."

"No, I don't want you to go." I squeezed his waist tighter as if I was strong enough to actually hold him there. I looked up into his eyes that shone bright in the light from the TV. "Why don't you just stay here?"

He pulled away and I sat up on my knees to face him completely. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, Jace. Just because you spend the night, doesn't mean you're moving in. It's really late and it just makes more sense for you to stay here." I took Jace's hand and turned the TV off as I led him to my bedroom, not giving hi a choice in the matter. "Okay, so I'm just going to go wash my face. I'll be right back."

I went into the bathroom and began my bedtime ritual. I washed off my makeup and took out the stud earrings I was wearing. I brushed out the tangles that had formed in my hair and pulled it into a messy bun. After staring at my reflection for a few seconds, I pulled my hair out of the bun and let my curls flow around my shoulders. When I walked back into my bedroom, Jace was already under the covers and shirtless. I had seen Jace without a shirt plenty of times, but every time I did, it was like the first time I saw him in the arena with screaming fans surrounding him as he prepared to fight to defend his championship belt.

I pulled back the blanket on my side and slid in next to Jace. All of the sudden, a thought crossed my mind. We had never actually defined what we were doing here. We spent almost every second of free time we had together, but what if Jace saw me a friend that he kissed sometimes. I sunk down into the bed and turned on my side facing the wall. Jace pulled my back to his front and wrapped his arm around my waist.

"Jace, what are we doing," I asked into the darkness.

"I thought we were going to sleep," he murmured into my hair. I turned in his arms so I could face him. His eyes glowed even in the dark. How was that possible?

"That's not what I mean. What are we doing in general? I know we spend a lot of time together, but what are we to each other?"

"Clary, where is this coming from?"

"We've been hanging out for a month and I think we should define the relationship."

"Well, as far as I'm concerned, you're my girlfriend."

"I'm your _only_ girlfriend?"

"Yes, Red. You're my only girlfriend. I think about you all the time. When we're not together, I want to be with you. Everything reminds me of you and the best part of my day is hanging out on the couch with you."

"So, you're my boyfriend?"

"If you want me to be." Instead of answering, I leaned forward and kissed him. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me to him. I put my arms around his neck and my fingers found his hair. "I guess that's a yes?"

"That's a definite yes."

Jace tucked my head under his chin and I snuggled into his chest. We fell asleep like that and I had one of the best nights sleep I'd ever had. When I woke up in the morning, I ran my hand across his side of the bed to find that the sheets were cold and he wasn't there. I got up slightly disappointed, especially after our talk the night before and went into the bathroom to brush my hair and teeth. I could smell something cooking in the kitchen and hoped it wasn't Isabelle. The last time she tried to cook something more complicated than toast, she almost burned the apartment down and I had to bribe the landlord into letting us keep the apartment.

There was a plate with eggs, bacon and toast sitting on the table and a cup of coffee sitting next to it. I looked up into the kitchen and saw my gloriously golden boyfriend moving about the kitchen like he was made to do it. He spotted me standing in the doorway with what I can only assume was a dumbfounded look on my face and walked my way.

"Good morning, Red," he said as he plopped a kiss on the top of my head.

"You're cooking," I said still trying to convince myself that this wasn't a dream. "You made me breakfast and coffee."

"Both statements are true." He chuckled and I walked further into the kitchen to stand next to him and observe. "You should probably eat. Your eggs are getting cold. I'll be there in a minute."

I went and sat down at the table to eat my breakfast. Isabelle emerged from her room rubbing the sleep out of her eyes with Simon not far behind.

"Someone cooked," she said as confused as I was. "No one ever cooks in this house. We're strictly cereal and orange juice for breakfast kinds of people." She peeked in the kitchen and snapped her head back as Simon went in to greet Jace. "Holy shit, there's a shirtless man in there cooking us breakfast."

"Yeah, I know," I said as I took a bite of my eggs and they were probably the greatest things I'd ever tasted. How could something as simple as scrambled eggs taste so delicious? I don't know what the hell he did to them, but they were amazing. Isabelle sat down as Simon and Jace came into the room and set down plates for themselves and Isabelle.

"Good morning, Isabelle," Jace said as he sat down next to me and put his hand on my knee under the table. He turned his face slightly and brushed his lips against mine.

"Okay, what am I missing here," Simon asked as he leaned back in his chair.

"Simon, have you met my girlfriend, Clary?"

I could feel the heat rush to my cheeks as Simon and Isabelle gawked at us. "Well, it's about freaking time," Isabelle said waving her arms around like a mad woman. "I thought you two would never get your shit together."

I continued to eat my breakfast as Jace stole glances at me and gave my knee a gentle squeeze every few seconds. When we were finished eating, Simon and Isabelle took the dishes into the kitchen to clean up and Jace turned to face me.

"So, what is my beautiful girlfriend up to today," he asked and I blushed as he took my hand in his and ran his thumb across my knuckles.

"I have some work to do for an assignment, but other than that, I'm free." I looked away from him for a second and when I looked back, his gaze was still completely fixed on mine. "I wanted to come by and shoot the kids class tonight if that's okay with you."

"That would be awesome."

"I was thinking that maybe I could start a website or something for the parents to go on and get pictures of their kids. I could go with you guys to tournaments and they would have professional pictures taken so they don't have to worry about it and can just focus on watching their kids."

"I think that's an amazing idea. Would you want to sell the pictures?"

"No, this is something I want to do for fun and they already pay enough to be able to train at your gym." I gave him a little smirk.

"You're amazing." He leaned forward and grabbed the back of my neck pulling me to him. Whenever Jace kissed me, I felt like no other kiss could top it, but then the next one did. I stood from my chair, never breaking the kiss and moved forward to sit on his lap. His arms wrapped around my waist and his hands rubbed circles in my back. The spell was broken when Isabelle cleared her throat and I buried my face in Jace's neck hiding my blush from her.

"I don't know if you two have heard of this," Isabelle said pointing to my bedroom, "but there's this thing called a bedroom. It's useful for morning make out sessions so your roommate and best friend doesn't throw up her breakfast."

I turned to face her. "Oh, really," I said incredulously. "Do you consider the living room your bedroom because I can't even count the number of times I've walked in on you and a guy going at it on the couch." Simon walked in behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. She tensed at my words, knowing Simon was there to hear them. He whispered something in her ear and I could see the tension lift from her shoulders.

"Jace, we should probably get going," Simon said and Jace dropped his head to my shoulder placing a kiss there. 'We have some new guys coming to check the gym out, remember?"

"Yes, I remember," Jace snapped at his friend. He cupped my cheek and turned my face to him. "Are you free for lunch?"

"Let me think about it," I said as I tapped my chin and looked off to the corner of the room. He squeezed my sides and I yelped. "Yes, I'm free. I'll come by and bring you some lunch. Sound good?"

"Sounds perfect." He kissed the tip of my nose and then moved to my lips one more time. "You're going to have to get off of me so I can leave, Red."

"Oh, sorry." I scrambled to stand and he pulled me into his arms. I noticed Simon and Isabelle by the door as they were saying their goodbyes. He promised to be by that night and she whispered something in his ear that made his eyes go wide. I giggled as Jace pressed his lips to my temple. I smacked his shoulder. "Go, Herondale. I'll see you in a few hours."

"Fine, Red." The boys walked out the door and headed to the gym. When the door closed, I had to cover my ears to protect them from Isabelle's squeal.

"God, Iz. What is your problem?"

"I'm sorry, were you not just paying attention the last hour," she asked with her hands on her hips. "One: Jace spent the night last night and made us breakfast. Two: you two are officially together. Three: Simon told me he loved me last night."

My eyes went wide and I was speechless. Usually when Isabelle told me a guy loved her it was followed by her telling me that she broke up with him. Instead, she was smiling like a fool and could be described as giddy.

"And," I asked begging her to continue.

"And, I said it back." She shrugged and sauntered off to the bathroom. I followed her and leaned up against the doorframe waiting for her to explain. When she didn't say anything after a few minutes, I broke the silence.

"Did you say it because you mean it?"

"Yes." She said matter-of-factly. "I love him and I'm not afraid of it anymore. Usually, I freak out, but when he told me last night, I almost felt relived. Like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders and I could finally let someone, the right one, in."

"Well, good. I'm happy for you, Iz." I turned to go to my room, but she stopped me.

"Don't think you can get away with not telling me what happened last night." I rolled my eyes and told her how everything happened the night before. "You know what I think?" I shook my head and that goofy smile was back. "I think these two tough, but caring and loving fighters could be the best things that ever happen to us."

In that moment, I knew she was right.

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed the chapter and continue to enjoy it. Let me know what you thought and leave a review. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

There is nothing that warms my heart more than watching Jace interact with the kids at the gym. I watch as a little boy walks up to him and Jace smiles down at him. I snap a shot. Jace picks the boy up and throws him over his shoulder. The boy is laughing uncontrollably and Jace fake slams him on the ground. Before I know it, every other child in the class is running and jumping all over Jace. I can't help but laugh and snap more pictures moving onto the mat and taking pictures from above. Suddenly, Jace's hand shoots out from the bottom of the pile and latches onto my ankle.

"Jace," I shriek. The children's laughter is accompanied by Jace's deep chuckle. "Don't you dare make me fall, I'm holding my camera."

The children start to remove themselves from Jace, but his grip on my ankle remains. Once all of them are gone, Jace rises to his feet without letting go of my ankle. He smiles wickedly as he holds my leg in the air and I try to balance. Simon comes up behind me and takes the camera from my hands. Before I can refuse, Jace raises my leg a little higher and swoops in to throw me over his shoulder and drop me gently to the ground. I can't help but laugh as Jace pins me to the mat.

"That was not very nice," I tried to sound serious and keep a straight face, but it just wasn't working. He smiled and dipped his head to kiss me, but caught my cheek as I turned away from him.

"Oh, are you mad at me now," he asked feigning disappointment.

"There are kids here, Jace. You don't want them going home and telling their parents that you were too busy making out with your girlfriend to teach their class."

"Oh, please. Simon has them in the octagon and they have no idea what we're doing. They're too excited to be in there because we usually don't let them in there." Jace turned as a small hand tapped on his shoulder. "Hey, Max. What's up?"

I tried to push Jace off of me, but he wouldn't budge. Max rocked back and forth on his toes.

"Is this your girlfriend," he asked pointing to me. I could see Jace smile and nod his head.

"Yes, she is. Max this is Clary. It appears she's in a bit of a predicament. What do you think she should do to get out of this situation?"

Instead of answering, Max laid down on the ground next to me. "Do what I do." Max planted his shoulders on the ground and raised his hips. I did the same and Jace moved fractionally. Max motioned for me to hook my leg around Jace's and I did. "Alright, now roll."

I pushed and rolled. Jace landed on his back and I pinned his arms to the mat as I straddled his waist.

"Very nice, Red," Jace smiled up at me and I leaned down to kiss him. "Thank you, Max. Why don't you go back with the other kids and Simon."

Max skipped off to the octagon. "Who was that?"

"Oh, Max? He's my old coach's son, so he's kind of like my little brother. Max's mom bolted when he was about two months old and basically left him on Hodge's doorstep. That was about a month after I came to live with Hodge."

"How did I not know that?"

"I'm sorry, I guess that's kind of something you mention, right?"

"Well, a normal person would mention it, but you're definitely not normal."

"No, I'm not." He wriggled his wrists from my grasp and caught me around the waist. Somehow, he maneuvered himself, picking me up, moving to his feet and planting his lips on my forehead. "I'll be done pretty soon. Do you want to go grab some dinner?"

"I thought we could just stay in tonight and order some take out."

"Okay, sounds good. We can watch a movie or something. I think Simon and Isabelle are going out for his birthday."

"Oh, it's Simon's birthday? If you want to go out with him, you can, Jace. I don't want you to think you need to spend every waking moment with me. If you want to hang out with your friends, you can. Don't worry about me."

"Are you done?" I nodded. "I wasn't even invited. Simon just wants to spend tonight with Isabelle."

"Oh, okay then. I'll just go wait in your office and start working on these pictures."

I turned and walked into Jace's office sitting in his big chair behind his desk. I set up my laptop on the desk and began loading the pictures I had taken today onto the computer. Skipping through most of them, I landed on the picture of all the kids piled on top of Jace from above. I decided I was going to frame it for him because most of the pictures I've taken at the gym have depicted the very serious side of training and I liked that this one showed him goofing off with these kids while he was probably thinking about his next fight and stressing out about all the work he has to do.

The phone on Jace's desk rang and I debated whether or not I should answer it. After the fifth ring, I picked up the phone.

"Angelic Power Gym, how can I help you," I said into the receiver.

"Yes, I'm looking for Jace," the man on the other end said.

"Okay, may I ask who's calling?"

"This is Valentine Morgenstern, the president of the organization Jace fights for."

"Oh, hello. Jace is in a class right now, can I take a message?"

"I think I would rather talk to him right now."

"Okay, I'll go get him." I put the phone on hold and went back out to the main floor. "Jace, Valentine Morgenstern is on the phone for you."

He mumbled something under his breath and stalked toward me. I followed him into the office and he sat in his chair as he picked up the phone. Not knowing what to do, I stood by the door as Jace spoke to Valentine. Jace was short with him and I could see how difficult this conversation was for him. He ran his hand through his hair and shook his head. After a few more minutes, Jace finally ended the call and leaned forward resting his head in his hands.

"Shit," he said as he lifted his head and noticed me standing in front of him. "Sorry, Red."

"Babe, what's wrong," I asked and he held his arms out for me. He pulled me onto his lap and I wrapped my arms around his neck resting my head on his shoulder.

"He's giving a title shot to his son, Jonathan Morgenstern."

"Why is that such a bad thing? Has he not earned the shot?" I had honestly never heard of this guy and I had been watching MMA and learning about it for six weeks.

"He's earned it. It's just that he and I used to be best friends. He was training with Hodge when I first got there. We trained together and even lived together at one point. We fought in different weight classes so there was never the chance of fighting coming between our friendship. That was until Jonathan decided to get involved with some pretty bad people and owed them a lot of money. They were betting against me in my first title fight and Jonathan wanted me to throw the fight. I knew I could beat that guy. I had worked hard to get there and my shot might have never come again, but Jonathan was in trouble so I told him I would throw the fight, but we were through. Now, his dad owns the organization and I have to fight him in my next fight."

"I'm so sorry, Jace. That's terrible. I can't believe he would do that to you."

"I haven't talked to him in five years and now I have to fight him." He shook his head and ran his hand through his hair again. "The thing is he's good. He's probably better than me and I don't want to loose my title to that low life. It was never supposed to happen. Apparently he's fighting up a weight class so he can have a shot at me."

I couldn't form words. What was I supposed to say in that situation? It was a shitty situation that I had no experience with. I rubbed my fingers in small circles on his neck and placed my lips against his forehead. "You're just going to have to make sure that doesn't happen and I'm going to help you. If you need to be here more, that's fine. I'll come to you and you can stay at my place because it's closer. We'll get through this, Jace. You are an amazing fighter and you can do this."

"What did I ever do without you? You're amazing."

"So I've been told." I squeezed him around his shoulders and pulled back to kiss him. "Are you ready to go?"

He nodded and I stood to gather my things. When I was ready, I took his hand and we walked out of the office to see Simon. Jace stopped to shake his hand and give him a man hug.

"Happy Birthday, man," he said as he patted Simon on the back.

"What did Valentine have to say," Simon asked with a worried look on his face.

"We'll talk about it tomorrow. Go have a fun night with your girl."

With that, we exited the gym and got in Jace's car to go to my apartment. The entire way, Jace didn't let go of my hand. I felt so helpless. I had no idea what I was supposed to do. He hadn't even fought Jonathan yet and it was already affecting him. What would happen after the fight and God forbid, he lost? I was just going to have to hope that that wouldn't be the case.

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I wanted to thank you all for the reviews and fav/follows. It really does mean a lot to me! :)**


	7. Chapter 7

Jace had me tucked into his side and his arms wrapped around me on the couch later that night. He hadn't talked much since we left the gym, but I felt like he just needed the silence and evidently me because he hadn't lost contact with me in some way since we had gotten back to my apartment. We were watching a trashy television show that I wasn't paying attention to. I spent most of the time, listening to his heartbeat under my ear and paying attention to the small motions he was making with his hands on my arm.

I lifted my head from his chest and looked into his eyes. His head dipped to place a chaste kiss on the tip of my nose. Before he could turn back to the TV, I caught his cheek in my hand and turned his face back to mine and captured his mouth with mine. He deepened the kiss as I moved to straddle his hips. His hands were running up and down my back while my fingers tangled in his hair. We broke our kiss and Jace moved his lips across my jaw line and down to my neck. He trailed kisses along my collarbone whispering to me. I almost didn't hear it because it was getting difficult to focus on anything other than his lips on my skin, but his words brought me back to reality.

"I love you," he whispered into the crook of my neck. I pulled his face back up so I could look in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, what," I asked.

"I think you heard me, Clary." He smirked. "But I'll say it again. I love you."

I scrambled to get off of his lap and walked to my bedroom. Closing the door behind me, I paced the floor. Jace knocked lightly on the door, but I didn't answer him. I had to tell myself to take deep breaths. Of course, I loved Jace, but everything was moving so fast. What would happen when he got bored or found someone prettier? I didn't think I could handle my heart being broken, much less it being broken by Jace Herondale. I sat on the edge of my bed in the silence for a while. Before long, I worried that Jace had left and rushed to open my door. I burst out of my room and looked frantically around the apartment for Jace. There was no sign of him, but then I felt his arms wrap around me from behind. I leaned back into his chest and breathed a sigh of relief. I guess he really did love me if he didn't leave after my freak out.

He turned me in his arms and looked down into my eyes kissing my forehead. My eyes closed for a moment while I reveled in the feel of Jace all around me.

"I'm sorry," I finally whispered.

"It's fine, Clary," his lips moved against my hair. "You don't have to say it. I just couldn't keep it in any longer especially after everything that happened today. I'm sorry for dropping that bomb on you."

"No, you have nothing to be sorry for." We stood there for a few more minutes just holding each other. I kept wondering what I was doing. Why wasn't I telling him how I felt? He was brave and confident and I just wasn't. I turned my face to bury it in his chest as he tightened his hold on me. "I love you."

I lifted my head to look into his eyes and they told me everything I needed to know. Jace's eyes said everything he wasn't able to say out loud. If I had doubted that he loved me, he eyes reassured me that he did as he leaned down to kiss me. Since Jace stood almost a full foot taller than me, he always had to stoop to kiss me when we were standing. I decided to make it easier on him as I placed my hands on his shoulders and jumped up to wrap my legs around his waist. Jace caught me under my thighs and carried me to bed.

o.O.0.O.o

Jace was even more beautiful when he was sleeping. When he was sleeping, his face was relaxed and his hair fanned out around him. My fingers traced the lines of his face and his mouth twitched while he dreamed.

"I would appreciate if you didn't watch me while I slept," Jace said with his eyes still closed. I pulled my hand back and rolled over to face away from him. I felt him pull me against him and nuzzle my neck. "You're so cute."

"Oh, thanks," I deadpanned. "That's exactly what I want you to think of me." He squeezed my side and kissed my neck.

"You are the most beautiful woman I have ever met."

"Oh, shut up." I pushed him away, but he caught me and turned me to face him.

"Why don't you believe me? Hasn't anyone told you you're beautiful before?"

"Other than my mom?" I lowered my head so I wasn't looking at his eyes. "No."

"Well you are. It's not an opinion, it's a fact." He brought his finger too my chin and lifted my face to him kissing my lips as if he were trying to convince me that what he said were true. "You make me a better person."

"Jace, stop." I tried to push him away because what he was saying was making me uncomfortable.

"No, I'm serious. If you weren't there today when I got that phone call, I probably would have destroyed my office. Knowing you were there to comfort me and support me made a difference. You can ask Simon, I have a tendency to overreact to certain situations."

"I'm sure you would have been fine."

He was silent for a few moments and I began to relax as his hands ran up and down my arms. I could feel my eyes getting heavy and I was just about to give in when Jace pulled me back.

"Why don't you believe that you're beautiful," he whispered into my hair.

"I don't know," I said defensively. I did know, but I wasn't sure I wanted to tell him because I didn't know what he would think of me after he knew. He might leave me and that was the last thing I wanted.

"What aren't you telling me, Red?" I squirmed and tried to get away from him, but he tightened his hold on me and wouldn't let me go.

"I met Sebastian when I was a freshman in college." I took a deep breath and Jace gave me a reassuring squeeze. "He was a couple of years older and took an interest in me. This was before I met Isabelle and I didn't really have friends to speak of and I sure as hell had never had a boyfriend. Sebastian paid attention to me and made me feel special for the first couple of months, but then I noticed that he started to drink and party more. He became mean." I took another deep breath trying to reign in the tears that threatened to fall in the corners of my eyes. "He started telling me I was ugly and that I would never be anything of worth. I started to believe him. I should have walked away then, but he would always apologize and I would forgive him because I was afraid of being alone. I met Isabelle and she noticed that I was not the same person when I was around Sebastian. I finally had enough when I caught him cheating on me. I told him I was done and haven't seen or talked to him since, but the effects of his words still remain."

I was crying freely now as Jace held me against him, kissed my head and whispered words of sympathy to me. My body wracked with sobs as I let my walls crumble in front of him. I opened up to him in a way I thought I wouldn't be able to again.

"I love you so much," he kept repeating this as he held me and tried to comfort me.

"I know and I love you too," I said finally turning to look at him. "You've made me realize that what Sebastian called love wasn't even close. You make me feel wanted and beautiful and worthy."

"Don't ever sell yourself short, Red. I plan on making you believe that you are the most beautiful woman in the world for a very long time."

I snuggled into his chest and took a deep breath. The sobs had stopped and I was able to breathe. Sebastian never loved me and I think I realized that a long time ago, but that was always my idea of what love was. It was all I had ever known. I wished I could have gone back to that time and tell myself to just leave, that everything would be okay and that I would find someone who truly did love me.

"What are you going to do about Jonathan," I asked. We hadn't really discussed his plan and I was anxious to know what he planned on doing.

"I'm going to fight him," he said matter-of-factly. "If he wants to fight up a weight class to try and prove a point, let him. He knows I'm better than him and I've got a good twenty pounds on him. I'm not saying it's going to be an easy fight, but I'll be damned if I let Jonathan Morgenstern off the hook that easily."

"So, what's the first step?"

"I need to study his fighting style, so that involves watching a lot of film. I haven't sparred with him or fought him in five years. I used to know every aspect of his technique and fighting style, but five years is a long time. I know for a fact that my style has changed and evolved over the years."

"When is the fight?"

"I have a month to prepare." He pulled me tighter against him. "I'm going to be absent a lot for the next month and I'm sorry, but I can't let him get what he wants. I was lucky to get another shot at the title after what I did for him and I promised myself that I would never take advantage of that. I'm not going to let him take this away from me."

"Jace, you don't have to apologize. I get it and I want to help. I don't have an assignment lined up this month, so I can do whatever you need me to do. I'll bring your meals to the gym. I'll watch film with you. I'll do anything to help you, babe."

"Well, now that you mention it, I'm not going to have time to run the business side of the gym because I will need to be training all day. Would you be willing to work in the office for me?"

"Of course, whatever you need."

"Thanks, Red. I love you."

"I love you too, Jace 'The Angel' Herondale." He chuckled at my use of his nickname.

"You're _my_ angel."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! What did you think? Let me know! :)**


	8. Chapter 8

Jace and Simon were out on a run a week before the big fight, when an older man with graying hair walked into the gym. I saw Max run out from behind him toward me.

"Hi, Red," I smiled and shook my head at his use of Jace's nickname for me.

"Hey, Max," I said. "Jace and Simon should be back any minute." I turned toward the man. "Who's this?"

"This is my dad." The man stepped forward with an extended hand and I took it.

"I'm Hodge," he said finally.

"Oh, it's so nice to finally meet you," I said. "Jace has told me so much about you."

I turned at the sound of the back door opening as Jace and Simon returned from their run. I smiled at him and he came up to me resting his arm naturally around my waist.

"Hey, babe," Jace said as he pressed his lips to my temple. "I see you've met Hodge." I nodded my head in agreement.

"So, you're Clary, I presume," Hodge said.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Hodge, this is my girlfriend, Clary." We smiled at each other after being formally introduced. Jace turned to me. "Hodge is going to help me over the next couple of days. I won't be done for a while and it's getting late, so you can go home if you want. I'll be by later."

"I was actually going to go grab us some dinner and bring it back," I said. "Why don't I take Max with me and you guys can start? After we eat, I can take Max home with me so you guys can have the gym to yourselves and not worry about him."

"You don't have to do that, Clary," Hodge said shaking his head.

"Nonsense, I want to." I let go of Jace and turned toward Max, who was shadow boxing in the octagon. "Hey, Max. Do you want to go with me to get dinner and then come hang out at my place while Jace and your dad work?"

Max came barreling toward me and latched onto my waist smiling a toothless smile up at me.

"Okay," Max said.

We left the gym to go pick up the pizza I had ordered. He hopped in the passenger seat of my car as I turned the key and the engine rolled over. Max was nearly bouncing out of his seat as he bobbed to the beat of the music in the car. I couldn't help but smile at this little boy next to me. Jace had told me stories and I had learned just how much Max meant to him. Jace had been the only one home when Max's mother dropped him off for Hodge. Being a seventeen-year-old kid, he had no idea what to do, but when he picked Max up out of the car seat, he knew that he and Hodge would do anything to take care of him. From that point on, Jace had been Max's older brother. He protected him and helped guide him through life. I learned that Jace gave half of his earnings from every fight to Hodge and set up a college fund for Max. They saw each other every day and had a bond that was difficult to explain. What I did know was that Jace loved Max more than anything, especially fighting.

After we picked up the pizza, Max and I headed back to the gym. Jace was in the octagon and Hodge was yelling out commands while Jace punched and kicked the air. Max ran up to the outside of the cage and grabbed onto it, yelling at Jace. He turned and smiled as his eyes met mine. Hodge patted Jace on the back and they walked toward me while I set up a table with pizza, salad and drinks. Jace came up behind me and kissed my temple. It was definitely his favorite place to show me affection, well in public, at least.

"Thanks, babe," he whispered into my hair.

"Enjoy this now, Jace," Hodge said as he loaded his plate with two slices of pizza. "You won't be eating this heavily until after weigh-ins."

"Oh, I totally forgot," I said shaking my head. "You shouldn't be eating pizza right now. What do you weigh right now?"

"Calm down, Red, I'll be fine. I really just have to watch what I eat the last couple of days before weigh-ins."

Jace loaded his plate with as much food as possible, I assume because he wouldn't be eating much for the next few days, and we all gathered on one of the mats to eat.

"Hey, Jace," Max said around a mouthful of pizza.

"Yeah, bud."

"Dad said I could go to the fight this weekend."

"That's cool, but you know if you go to the fight with us, you have to hang out in my prep room with me before, right?"

"Really?" Jace smiled as he nodded and Max attacked him. The food was forgotten as they started grappling on the mats. I had a ridiculous grin on my face and Hodge shook his head as if he was used to this sort of thing. Jace allowed Max to manipulate him like I had seen him do with the kids in his classes and Max sank in a triangle choke on Jace. After a few seconds, I knew Jace wasn't feeling the effects of the choke like he would if he were fighting someone his size, but he tapped out anyway, giving Max the satisfaction of winning.

"Alright, you two," Hodge said. "Max and Clary need to go so we can get out of here at a decent hour."

"Come on, Dad," Max whined.

"Yeah, come on, Dad," Jace repeated with a smile on his face. He winked at me and I shook my head at his antics. "No, you're right. Go home with Clary, bud and I'll see you tomorrow. I bet she'll let you have ice cream."

Max's face lit up when Jace said ice cream and I knew there was no way I could deny him now. _Thanks a lot, babe._

Max and Jace got up from the mats and helped clean up the mess from dinner. When the gym looked clean enough, I decided it was time for us to leave. I kissed Jace on the cheek, but he had other ideas. He kissed me full on the lips in front of Max and his pseudo father. I tried to push him away, but I didn't have the strength or, frankly, the will to. After a few more seconds, he pulled away and I could hear Max giggling behind me. Jace looked over my shoulder and winked at him, which made him full out laugh. I smacked him on the chest.

"Go finish training so you can win that fight and come home to me," I said before kissing him one more time.

"I'll see you later tonight," he said as he held me to him and rested his cheek against my hair. "I love you."

"I love you, too. Now, go."

He finally let me go and I turned to see Max waiting for me with a huge smile on his face. We made our way to my apartment and I let Max have free reign over the radio in my car, something I wouldn't even let Jace do. That little boy had won me over just like he did everyone.

Max and I entered my apartment and I immediately covered his eyes with my hand. Isabelle and Simon were on the couch making out like a couple of teenagers with Isabelle straddling Simon.

"Isabelle," I yelled and she scrambled to get off of Simon and straighten her shirt.

"Oh, shit," she mumbled as she put her head in her hands. "I'm sorry, Clary."

Simon's cheeks reddened as he saw Max standing next to me with my hand over his face. I finally lifted my hand as Max giggled.

"Max, why don't you find a movie to watch with Simon while I go talk to Isabelle for a minute," I suggested and he hopped over to the couch to flop down next to Simon.

I grabbed Isabelle's arm and dragged her to my bedroom shutting the door behind us.

"Clary, I'm so sorry," she apologized. "I had no idea you were bringing Max home and Simon and I got a little carried away. It's just that he's been helping Jace so much lately and I've barely seen him all week."

"Iz, it's fine," I said placing my hands on her shoulders to try and calm her down. "I should have called you and told you I was bringing Max home. Don't worry about it. Let's just watch whatever movie Max picked out and promise me that you two won't make out during the movie."

She laughed and nodded her head as I placed an arm around her shoulder and led her back out to the living room. Max and Simon already had some movie about fighting on and Isabelle and I sat down on the couch. I sat next to Max and he settled back into the couch by my side. Isabelle had her head rested on Simon's shoulder and I could tell she was going to fall asleep soon. I closed my eyes to rest them as the exhaustion of the past few weeks settled in. Working at the gym and taking care of everything Jace needed besides training was starting to take it's toll, but I kept reminding myself that there were only a few more days until the fight. I started thinking about the fight.

What would happen if Jace lost? Would he be the same person? Would it change him? I couldn't answer those questions, but they had plagued me since Jace told me he would be fighting Jonathan. He wanted to win this fight so badly, probably more than any other fight he had ever fought and I wanted this for him more than anything. I had done anything he had needed in the past few weeks and I knew he would be crushed if all of his preparation and sacrifices went to waste.

I felt myself nodding off as I thought about my life and how much it had changed in the past two months. I wasn't just Clary Fray, photographer. I had people who depended on me and loved me. I had found somewhere I belonged.

"Red," I was awoken by the sound of Jace's voice. "Wake up, babe."

"Jace," it came out as more of a question. I looked around and noticed Max curled into my side and the other side of the couch was empty. Simon must have taken Isabelle to bed. "What time is it?"

"It's after midnight. Come on, let's let Hodge take Max home." Jace picked Max up and leaned down to kiss my forehead. "I'm going to take him to the car. I'll be right back. Go to bed."

I nodded my head and got up from the couch to go to my bedroom. Once I was in the safety of my bedroom, I changed into yoga pants and a tank top to sleep in. I washed my face and brushed my teeth. When I went back into my room, Jace wasn't back yet, so I crawled under the blankets and curled up into a ball closing my eyes. I finally felt Jace crawl in next to me as he pulled my back to his chest and kissed my head.

"How was the rest of your night," I asked dreamily.

"Hodge definitely knows how to kick my ass," he said as he moved my hair behind my ear and kissed my shoulder. "How was Max?"

"Other than him almost seeing Isabelle and Simon going at it on the couch, everything was great." He chuckled and pulled me tighter to him.

"He's a good kid." Jace entered a thoughtful silence and I didn't want to interrupt him. "So I just have one more day of training and then I'll be taking the rest of the time before the fight to relax and rest so my muscles aren't fatigued when I go in to fight."

"You mean I'm going to be stuck with you for three whole days?" I feigned disappointment.

"If I'm lucky, you'll be stuck with me for the rest of your life." He must have felt me tense at his words because he moved his fingers in circles on my shoulder to try and calm me. "I really can't thank you enough for all of your help lately. I don't know what I would have done without you."

"I told you I would do whatever you needed."

"Right now, I need to hold my beautiful girlfriend as I sleep off the exhaustion today has brought me."

I snuggled deeper into the bed as Jace's arms tightened around my waist. I turned my head back to kiss him goodnight and he place an extra kiss on the tip of my nose.

"Your wish is my command."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I just want to thank you all so much for reading and all the favs/follows. **

**So we have the big fight next chapter and it's going to be a good one! So stay tuned and let me know what you thought of this chapter and leave a review! Until next time! :)**


	9. Chapter 9

This was all so new to me. I sat in the crowd in front of the stage where a scale was located along with Valentine Morgenstern and other officials. It was such a production to watch all of the fighters scheduled to fight the next night weigh in and take their famous stare down picture. I had my own camera hanging off of my shoulder and was taking pictures of the scene unfolding in front of me. Finally, it was time for the two fighters participating in the main event, Jace and Jonathan, to weigh in.

"Weighing in for the welterweight championship bout," the announcer's voice came over the speakers. "Jonathan Morgenstern."

At the sound of his name, my view went to the steps leading up to the stage. Jonathan Morgenstern climbed the steps and walked toward the scale with his trainers and teammates following him. He hugged his father awkwardly and began taking off the clothes that would weigh him down. Once he was just in his compression shorts, he smiled and pointed to the crowd. His white-blonde hair was disheveled and his dark eyes were haunting. He smiled wickedly when the numbers on the scale balanced out and revealed his weight.

"One hundred seventy pounds, exactly." He raised his arms and stepped off of the scale to put his jeans back on, but he left his shirt off waiting for Jace to be weighed in.

Jace had told me that Jonathan usually fought in the lightweight division, which was one hundred fifty-five pounds. That meant that Jonathan had gained fifteen pounds for this fight and it looked like it was fifteen pounds of muscle. Jace had been adamant that he was stronger than Jonathan and that would be his advantage along with his superior jiu jitsu skills, but if Jonathan had put on fifteen pounds of muscle, how much stronger could Jace be?

"Weighing for the welterweight championship bout, your current undisputed champion, Jace 'The Angel' Herondale."

The crowd erupted into hysterics as Jace climbed the steps to the stage with Simon and Hodge behind him. Max was standing next to me and could barely contain his excitement. Jace removed the clothes that branded the names of his sponsors and stepped on the scale. He looked confident and ready to fight, but I could see in his eyes how nervous he was. Jonathan gaining muscle was unexpected. His eyes met mine in the sea of people and I gave him a reassuring smile.

"One hundred sixty-nine pounds." Jace raised both arms and flexed every muscle in his upper body for show.

Once he stepped off of the scale, he put his board shorts on and moved to the side of the stage where Jonathan and Valentine were waiting.

"This is going to be a great fight," Valentine said into the microphone. "Gentleman, please square off."

Jace raised his hands like he was getting ready to punch, but Jonathan stepped toward him. Their faces were mere inches apart and they were staring daggers at each other. I could see Jace's jaw clench and knew he was having a hard time not taking a swing at Jonathan. His smile was sinister as he gained another inch in the space between him and Jace. Valentine finally pushed them apart and the crowd applauded as the final words were said and the weigh-ins ended.

I met Jace at the bottom of the steps and Max couldn't stop talking about how excited he was to be there.

"Oh my gosh, Jace," Max said flailing his arms around. "This is so cool. I can't believe I'm here. Did you see how big Jonathan was?"

"Yeah, I saw, bud," Jace said ruffling his hair.

"Max, let's go back to the room and give Jace some time to rest," Hodge said turning Max toward the exit.

"Oh, okay," Max looked down at the ground and waved to us. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Jace turned to me and I couldn't help but laugh. "He's really excited to be here," I told him as he pulled me into his arms.

"I know," he mumbled and pulled away so we could see each other. "I'm just getting nervous. I didn't expect Jonathan to gain that much weight. I knew he would gain some, he had to, but he only had a month to gain fifteen pounds of muscle. It doesn't seem possible."

"Do you think he planned this? Like maybe he knew he would be fighting you before you did?"

"It's possible, but I don't really want to think about it right now. I've done everything I can to prepare for this fight. I guess we'll see what happens tomorrow."

He slung an arm around my shoulder and we headed toward our hotel room. "So, what do you usually do the night before a fight?"

"Eat." We both laughed. Jace hadn't eaten anything heavier than salad in two days and I knew he had to be starving.

"Okay, babe. Let's get you some food."

Once we were back in our room, I called the front desk and ordered room service. Jace wanted a burger and fries and what Jace wants, Jace gets. I also ordered myself an order of fries and two milkshakes. When the food arrived, we sat of the couch and Jace devoured his food and half of my fries. We sat in comfortable silence when all of the food was gone and Jace pulled me into his side. I rested my head on his chest as he changed the channel on the TV.

I ended up falling asleep in Jace's arms on the couch and he had taken me to bed because when I woke up the next morning, I was surrounded by plush white bedding and pillows. There was only one thing missing. Jace wasn't next to me and even though I was covered in warm blankets, I felt cold. I had grown accustomed to waking up in Jace's arms.

I exited the bedroom of the hotel suite and noticed that the sliding glass door to the balcony was open and I could see Jace's outline through the flowing curtains. I went out onto the balcony and wrapped my arms around Jace's waist from behind. His hands covered mine and we stood in silence. Finally, he turned in my arms and I rested my chin on his chest looking up into his eyes. He bent down and kissed me.

"Good morning, Red," he whispered as he started to sway.

"Morning," I said breathing in the unique scent that was Jace. "Are you ready?"

"As I'll ever be."

"Then let's get you to the arena." Jace chuckled and took my hand in his as he led me back into the hotel room.

We got ready in silence and I knew that Jace wasn't going to want to talk. He needed this time to mentally prepare and just be in his own head for a little while. He had spent weeks preparing and talking about his plan, so he didn't need to spend the hours before the most important fight of his career, in his eyes, talking about it more. He needed to decompress and start to gain focus. He would spend the two hours before the fight warming up and hyping him self up. Right now, he needed calm and I was going to give it to him.

When he was finally ready, there was a knock at our door. Jace got up from his seat on the couch and bent down to kiss me.

"I love you, Jace," I whispered against his lips as he pulled back. "I believe in you. No matter what happens tonight, I will love you and you will always be my champion."

He pulled me into his arms as he took a deep breath. "I love you, so much, Clary. I'll see you afterward." He backed off slightly, but didn't release me. "Give me a kiss."

I did. I kissed him as if I were trying to tell him everything my heart felt in those last thirty seconds before he had to leave. I kissed him to tell him just how much I loved him and when we finally pulled apart, I could see in his eyes that he knew. He placed one more kiss to the tip of my nose before turning and answering the door where Hodge, Simon and Max stood ready to accompany him to the arena.

Once they were gone, I made my way to Isabelle and Simon's room where I was going to get ready. We waited for what seemed like hours before heading to the arena to take our seats and watch the fights.

There were four fights scheduled before Jace and Jonathan would fight. I sat watching them, but not really absorbing what was happening. Isabelle finally took my hand in hers so I would stop wringing my hands together.

"It's going to be okay, Clary," she tried to reassure me. I simply gave her a small smile and turned as they announced Jonathan and his song began to play. He was walking out to _The Devil Went Down to Georgia_ by Charlie Daniels and that sinister smile was plastered on his face again. His eyes were so dark you couldn't see any emotion. I was relieved when his song ended and he stood bouncing around in his corner because I could finally see Jace.

Jace told me the night before that he had changed his song. This was going to be a different, more serious fight and he didn't want to come out to an upbeat song that he loved. He decided on _Stairway to Heaven_ by Led Zeppelin and I thought it was absolutely perfect. The song started and Jace came into view. His eyes were closed as he walked the path to the octagon. I couldn't read him with his eyes closed, but I knew he was trying to contain himself. He would have twenty-five minutes to loose himself in the ring, but right now he needed to remain focused. After he finished groom check, he hugged Simon and Hodge. Hodge whispered something to Jace and he nodded in agreement or understanding, I wasn't sure. The last person Jace came to was Max and he knelt down to his level to hug him. Max whispered something as well and Jace smiled when he pulled away. Finally, he climbed the steps leading to the octagon and hopped around the ring passing Jonathan before landing in his corner.

Jace jumped in the air three times before landing back on the ground and shaking his arms out. The announcer moved to the center of the octagon and began his spiel.

"This is the main event of the evening, the welterweight championship bout," he began. "Introducing first, fighting out of the blue corner. This man is a mixed martial artist with a record of five wins and one loss. Fighting out of Los Angeles, California, Jonathan Morgenstern!"

Jonathan stepped forward, out if his corner and waved to the crowd. I heard a smattering of "boos" throughout the arena. He returned to his spot and the announcer pointed at Jace.

"Introducing second," the announcer yelled. "Fighting out of the red corner. This man is a mixed martial artist with a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He is fighting out of Los Angeles California and has a record of eleven wins and zero losses. The undisputed welterweight champion of the world, Jace 'The Angel' Herondale!"

The crowd erupted in thunderous applause and cheers. The referee took the announcer's place in the middle of the octagon and brought Jace and Jonathan to the center with him. When they were told to touch gloves, Jace put his hands up to do so, but Jonathan backed away without even acknowledging Jace. I knew that pissed him off and he wasn't going to hold back. The referee told them to begin fighting and I sucked in a breath.

I sat down, not knowing if I could handle watching Jace get hit or hurt. The first time I had ever seen Jace he was fighting, but so much had changed since then. I knew him and I loved him. It wasn't easy watching someone you loved get punched and kicked.

Jace and Jonathan circled each other for a few seconds before Jonathan took the first swing. Jace deflected the hit and went in for a take down. He managed to get on top of Jonathan and hit him in the temple a few times before Jonathan rolled and escaped the position. This continued until the referee separated them and Jace went to sit on the stool Simon had set down in his corner. Hodge yelled instructions in his face while Simon applied more Vaseline to his face and the cut above his eyebrow to prevent more cuts.

After about a minute, Hodge and Simon exited the octagon and Jace and Jonathan stood in their corners waiting for instruction. The referee clapped his hands together and Jace and Jonathan moved toward each other. This time, Jonathan went in for a take down, but Jace sprawled and prevented it before standing up and kneeing him in the ribs. Jonathan rocked before swinging around to catch Jace in the temple. I could see that the hit knocked Jace a little off kilter, but it wasn't until Jonathan hit Jace with a perfectly placed hit that had Jace falling to the ground that I knew this was bad. Jace hit the mat and Jonathan covered him, raining punches to the side of his head before the referee removed him.

Jace had just lost the fight.

The referee called over Hodge, Simon and the ringside doctor and I watched as the man I loved laid on the ground unconscious and unmoving.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! I was just way too excited about this chapter to wait to post it, so here you go! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did writing it. **

**i just wanted to clear one thing up because I know I haven't mentioned it before. Jace is 27 and Clary is 25 in this story. I know some of you were wondering, sorry for not mentioning it earlier. **

**Anyways, thanks again for reading and let me know what you thought! :)**


	10. Chapter 10

_The referee called over Hodge, Simon and the ringside doctor and I watched as the man I loved laid on the ground unconscious and unmoving._

I couldn't breathe. I kept trying to breathe air in, but it wasn't working. I had a death grip on Isabelle's hand and I could hear her in the distance talking to me. Time had stopped and I didn't know where I was. All I knew was that Jace was lying on the ground and I couldn't help him. Never mind the fact that he lost the fight, I was more concerned about the fact that he still hadn't woken up. It felt like it had been hours since I last saw his golden eyes, when, in reality, it was only a few minutes.

Jonathan had perched himself on the top of the cage and was waving to the crowd. The crowd was silent as they watched their hero fall from grace. When Jonathan finally realized he wasn't going to get the praise he yearned for, he hopped down and met Valentine, who had the belt in his hands, in the middle of the ring. They stood talking to one another for a few minutes before going to Jace's side. I wanted to claw his eyes out for even thinking he could breath the same air as my angel.

The doctor was finally able to get Jace to open his eyes and sit up. Jonathan came up and patted him on the back trying to show the world what a good sport he was. I knew better. Jace had told me enough stories for me to know that Jonathan Morgenstern was nothing but a selfish and slimy little worm. I finally let out the breath that I had been holding and turned to Isabelle, who had tears in her eyes.

"Clary, look at me," she said holding my face in her hands. "It's going to be okay. He just got a little rocked. He's going to be fine. What you need to do is follow them into the back and be there for him. You can't show him that you're upset right now. He needs you to be strong for him. Can you do that, Clary?"

I could hear what she was saying, but I just couldn't form words or really function like a normal human being at the moment, so I just nodded as she turned me in the direction Jace was headed with Hodge and Simon holding him up for support. I could hear Jonathan in the distance thanking someone for all their help and his dad for giving him the opportunity. Something about Jace being a great fighter crossed his lips and I wanted to turn around and go fight him myself, but I continued on the path and followed the golden mass of hair in front of me.

An arm darted out in front of me to stop me and I yelled in Jace's direction.

"Jace!" Simon turned his head at the sound of my voice. He let go of Jace to come help me.

"Is there a problem here," he asked the security guard blocking me.

"She doesn't have clearance," he said, never putting his arm down. Simon grabbed my arm and tugged.

"She does now." Simon placed his arm protectively around my shoulder and guided me to the room where Jace would be.

"Thank you, Simon," I said when I could finally hear myself think.

"Don't worry about it. I know he's going to need you as much as he needs me and Hodge."

"How is he?" I stopped him outside a door I recognized as Jace's.

"Right now? He's in shock. He never expected this to happen especially the way it did." A thought crossed my mind quickly.

"Where's Max?"

"He's with Isabelle. She's taking him back to our room until we're done here." He looked at the door and put a reassuring hand on my shoulder. "Look, Clary, we really need to go in there."

I nodded and took a deep breath as he opened the door. I don't know what I was expecting to see, but it wasn't what I saw when we entered the room. Hodge was sitting on a chair in the corner. The room was silent and Jace was sitting on the couch with his head thrown back and his eyes closed. Hodge exchanged a look with Simon and they nodded to each other. Simon gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze before he and Hodge left the room. I didn't exactly know what to do and Jace hadn't reacted to them leaving, so I went to stand between his legs in front of the couch. He righted his head but didn't open his eyes.

I ran my hands through his hair and his hands rested on my hips. He took a deep breath and opened his eyes. I choked back the tears that threatened to fall and leaned down to place a kiss on his lips. When we pulled away, I gave him a sad smile.

"Hi," I whispered running my fingers through his hair.

"Hey, Red," he said with a small smile in return. "I lost."

"I know, baby."

"I let my guard down for a millisecond and he saw it. He took advantage and now he has my belt."

"It's okay, Jace. You fought the best you could and got caught at a vulnerable moment."

"I'm sorry." His eyes were telling me just how hurt he was, not physically but emotionally. He couldn't stand the fact that Jonathan beat him after everything he had put him through.

"Jace, look at me." I took his face in my hands and held his gaze. "You have nothing to be sorry about. I'm just glad that you weren't hurt worse than you were."

"Max is here." He swallowed noticeably. "He watched me get my ass kicked and he had to be taken home by Isabelle. He's probably so scared. He's never seen me loose."

"Honey, that boy adores you. You're his hero, but you need to realize that you're not invincible. You held that title for five years and I know you didn't want to loose it to him, but don't let this tear you down. Let it build a fire in you and come back to take back your belt."

"I want my belt back."

"I know, and if I know you at all, you'll get it back. I'm not worried about that right now." I turned his head in my hands so I could inspect the bruises that were forming around his eyes. I lightly traced the darkest one with my fingers and Jace winced before I pressed my lips against it. "Does it hurt?"

"Not anymore."

"What do you want to do?"

"Right now, I want to go back to the hotel room and sleep. Tomorrow, I start training again. I don't care if I have to fight my way back up the ladder to get another title shot. I will get that belt back and I can only hope that Jonathan still has it when I do because I want to take it away from him."

"You have no idea how proud I am of you. You are so graceful and I admire that so much." I kissed his forehead before he stood and wrapped me in his arms. Simon came back in the room, but Jace didn't let go of me as he looked over the top of my head and talked to Simon.

"We're going to head back to the hotel," Simon said. "Max is with Isabelle and I think he needs to see you to make sure that you're okay."

We made our way back to our hotel rooms and stopped at Simon and Isabelle's to see Max. Simon unlocked the door and we followed him inside. Max and Isabelle were sitting on the couch watching a recording of Jace's first title fight. I had studied it over the past month enough to know exactly what was happening without looking at the screen. Right now, Jace was hitting his opponent in the temple in the first round. His opponent would go down and Jace would win the fight by knockout. I stole a glance at Jace, who was standing next to me, and squeezed his hand. He squeezed back and ran his thumb over my knuckles.

"Max," Simon said and Max's head turned immediately. When his eyes found Jace, I could see the tears forming in his eyes. He hopped up from the couch and ran to Jace, who had knelt down to catch him in his arms. Max's shoulders were shaking as he cried into Jace's shoulder. I rubbed circles in Jace's back just so he would know I was there.

"Shhhh," Jace said rubbing Max's back and rocking from side to side. "It's okay. I'm okay. It's just a couple of bruises. You've seen me with bruises before." Max mumbled something intelligible and Jace must have understood because he nodded and continued to sooth him. "These things happen, Max. I can't win every fight and holding a title for five years is unheard of. It was bound to happen at some point."

Max pulled back and looked at Jace. "I just really don't like Jonathan," Max said and Jace chuckled.

"It's okay, Max," I said. "I don't like him either."

Jace stood from his kneeling position and Max latched onto the hand that didn't grab for mine. "Look at my two favorite people protecting me from my least favorite person."

"I'm not ashamed to say that I wanted to claw his eyes out when he tried to act all sportsman like. If you never fight him again, I will."

"Wow, Red. When did you go all spitfire on us?"

"The moment I saw your heart get broken and I was helpless to stop it."

Jace pulled me tighter against him and kissed my forehead. "I love you so damn much, Clary."

"I love you, too. We're going to get through this. Me and you?" I moved my finger between us. "We're a team."

"I like the sound of that."

"What about me," Max piped up, jumping to get our attention.

"Of course, bud," Jace smiled down at him. "You're the most important part of our team. Who else is going to teach Clary how to grapple?"

"I don't know, but she definitely needs some help." Jace stifled a laugh at Max's dig.

"Hey," I said. "I'm just learning. I'm pretty sure neither of you were awesome the first time you rolled around on a mat."

"Um, have you met me?" Jace pointed to himself as if to prove a point. "I'm pretty much amazing at everything I do."

"Wow, you are so cocky sometimes."

"Not cocky, Red. Confident."

"Whatever you want to call it, babe."

I reached up on my toes and kissed his lips before we turned to return to our hotel room. Jace had lost his fight, but I think having all of us around to distract him was helping. He didn't have time to think about the pain he felt at the moment and I never wanted him to feel that pain. If it were up to me, I would take all of his pain away for the rest of his life. The look in his eyes when he told me he lost just about gutted me and I never wanted to see that again. I knew he would stop at nothing to get his belt back and I would be right by his side every step of the way.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! I hope you're enjoying the story so far. We're going to get away from fighting for a couple of chapters, but don't worry, Jace will fight again and I have a feeling e'll be even better than he was before. Anyways, let me know what you thought and I just wanted to thank you all for your kind words! :)**


	11. Chapter 11

It's amazing how much your life can change in such a short amount of time. Two months ago, I was taking photos around the world for a living and today I'm looking for a space to open my own studio. When we got back from the fight two weeks ago, Jace was insistent that I start looking for a place and fulfill my dream of opening my own photography business.

"You've helped me live my dream," he had said. "It's my turn to help you."

So now Jace was an investor in Fray Photography and he was helping me find a space to set up shop. We had been to about twenty different places around town, but none of them were quite right. I was exhausted and just wanted to go home, but Jace wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Okay, there's just one more I want you to look at," he said as he led me to the door of the final space he was showing me. He had his hand over my eyes so I couldn't see where I was going.

"Jace, this is ridiculous," I said in a huff. "Where are you taking me?" He stopped suddenly, holding me back and dropped his hand from my eyes. When I opened my eyes, I saw that I was standing in front of the gym. I was immediately confused. "I don't understand. You're giving me the gym to use as a studio?"

"No, silly." He laughed. "Look next door." I did as he said and noticed that the space next door to the gym was up for lease. On the outside, this seemed perfect. I would never be too far from Jace and he would just love having me right next door.

I followed him inside and started looking around. The floor plan was very similar to that of the gym. There was an office on the side and a huge open space. I could use the main area as my gallery and set up the room in the back as a studio to do the shoots. I imagined, though, that I would mostly go off property to shoot. This was just so I would have a place to work and show my photos. There was a large closet in the back that I could use as a dark room and I finally thought I had found a place to start my business. I turned to Jace and jumped into his waiting arms.

"Why didn't you show me this place first?"

"I didn't want you to think I was trying to keep track of you. Do you like it?"

"It's perfect."

o.O.0.O.o

Two weeks later, I was settled in to my new office and my studio was open for business. I was having a showing of my photos that night to show the community my work and get my name out there. Jace had helped me choose photos to display and most of them ended up being from the gym instead of my landscapes because I was trying to build myself up as a still life photographer.

The featured photo was one I had taken only a few weeks ago. We had gone to another tournament for one of Jace's fighters and I had been in the ring at the end of the fight when the decision was made, with Jace. I stood directly to the side of Jace's fighter and lined up to take a shot as soon as the decision was made. In the end, his arm was raised and I ended up capturing a picture that was of the profiles of both fighters with the referee between them. It perfectly showed the emotion of winning and defeat in the same frame.

I was examining the photo hanging on the wall when Jace walked in the door.

"Hey, Red," he said as he wrapped his arms around my waist and pressed his lips to my temple. "We should probably get home and get ready."

"Oh, really," I said turning my head to face him. "So my apartment is home now?"

"Well, yeah. I mean most of my stuff is there anyway and I can't even remember the last time I slept at my place."

"I think I would like you to live with me officially, but I would need to talk to Isabelle first. It's her apartment, too, you know."

"I get it and I'm sure if she wanted Simon to move in, one of us might have to move. Four people in that apartment might be too much."

"Okay, let's just go get ready. We can figure this all out tomorrow."

"That's right, I get to show off my beautiful and talented girlfriend to the world tonight."

"You're too sweet." He kissed me once more before turning and leading me out of the building. I locked up before following him to his car.

Once we were home, I hopped in the shower, careful not to get my hair wet so I could curl it. When I got out of the shower, I put my robe on and started on my hair and makeup. Jace lounged on my bed watching me get ready before he had to start getting ready himself. I finally got my hair to work the way I wanted it to with half of it pulled back and the rest flowing around my shoulders. My dress was hanging in the closet and I stood in front of it for a good ten minutes before I finally decided to put it on.

I wasn't used to looking like a girl. With my shorts and tank tops that were worn nonstop, I had never thought of myself as a girly girl. Standing in front of the mirror, I examined myself. My dress hit me the floor and hugged all the right curves. It was one-shouldered with fabric hanging from the strap. The waist had a belt made of crystals and the dress was a deep shade of purple that made the green in my eyes pop. I heard a sharp intake of breath and turned at the sound.

"What," I asked Jace. "What's wrong? Do I look too short?"

"No," Jace said with a small laugh and shook his head. "You look absolutely perfect."

He closed the distance between us and held me in his arms in silence until I looked at the clock and noticed we were going to be late to my own studio opening.

Jace helped me into his car and stole a kiss that took my breath away. He held my hand as he drove and ran his thumb along my knuckles. When we pulled up to the studio, Jace turned the car off and turned to face me.

"Breathe, Red," he said as he reached up to cup my cheek. "Tonight is going to be amazing. Everyone is going to be able to see how amazingly talented you are. I love you and I'm so proud of you."

I leaned across the center console and took his face in my hands to kiss him. "I love you, so much."

Jace opened his door and ran around to the passenger side to help me out of the car. When we walked in the studio, it was already packed. I couldn't believe it. All these people were here to see my work. I walked around the room introducing myself and taking praise for my photos.

When I saw Isabelle and Simon across the room, I ran to her side and embraced my best friend.

"Clary," Isabelle shrieked when I practically knocked her over since she was wearing sky-high heels. "This is all so amazing. I'm so proud of you!"

"Thanks, Iz." I reached up to wipe the tear that had fallen. Isabelle and I started talking about lighting choices and which lens is the best for which kind of shot while Jace and Simon walked away from us to the bar. I looked around the room to see everyone having a relatively good time and admiring the photos lining the walls. I had multiple people come up to me and ask if they could make an appointment for their family portraits. The night was quickly turning into one of the best nights of my life. That was until I felt a shiver run through my body as a hand was placed on my shoulder.

I turned and stifled a gasp as I stared into the cold black eyes of Jonathan Morgenstern. I looked around the room to try and get Jace's attention, but his back was turned to me and he was talking to Simon and Isabelle.

"What are you doing here, Jonathan," I asked trying not to look into his eyes.

"I just wanted to check out the local talent," he said with a sinister smile etched across his face.

"I don't think Jace should know you're here. Maybe you should just leave." I started to walk away to find Jace, but Jonathan grabbed my arm and stopped me. His grip was tight and it was beginning to cut off circulation.

"I'm not going anywhere and I'm not stopping until everything golden boy cares about is taken away from him. The belt was just the first step. His flavor of the week will be next and then I'll go after the gym. Maybe then, Hodge will see who was always superior instead of worshipping the freaking ground Jace walks on. Maybe then, my dad will finally understand why I did the things I did when I was younger."

"Jonathan, you really need to go," I choked out trying to hold back my tears. _Where the hell is Jace?_

Suddenly, Jonathan was yanked back and Jace's fist connected with his jaw. Simon was holding Jonathan back so he couldn't go after Jace and he pushed me behind him to shield me.

"What the hell are you doing here," he shouted and I placed a hand on his arm. "If you don't get out in the next thirty seconds, I won't be held accountable for what I do to you."

"Oh, so now the angel wants to fight," Jonathan's face was beginning to swell from the impact. "Where was that attitude when you were trying and failing to defend your title? Maybe you should think about your little piece of ass with me next time and just go into a blind rage. It might help you out."

I didn't see it coming, but Jace moved away from me and into Jonathan's face so fast I almost fell over. He was screaming unintelligible things in his face. I was surprised he hadn't hit him yet. After a few moments of this, people began to form a circle around the chaos. I needed to end this and do it quickly if I ever wanted to be hired again.

"Jace," I said placing my hands on his shoulders and yanking him back. His shoulders sagged as he turned to face me. He looked defeated and broken. I pulled him into my arms and tried to comfort him.

"I won't let him talk about you like that," he whispered into my ear.

"I know, baby. I know." I then realized that we still had an audience and turned Jace to finish what he had started.

"You need to leave," he said pointing at Jonathan. "And if I ever see you touch my girlfriend again, I'll kick your ass so fast you won't even know what hit you."

Simon shoved Jonathan forward and escorted him out of the building. Jace placed an arm protectively around my shoulder and left it there for the rest of the night. Simon and Isabelle set up camp at my side and moved about the room with me. We finally were able to get back the light-heartedness of the night and ended up having a great time.

Later, when we were lying in bed, Jace had me caged in his arms. His breathing was steady and his eyes were locked with mine.

"I love you," he said. I reached up to touch his face and he closed his eyes.

"I know you do," I whispered against his lips as I moved in to kiss him. "I love you, too."

"I promise I will never let anyone hurt you and I will always protect you."

I had no doubt in my mind that Jace would do anything to protect me and I just hoped it never got to that point. Seeing Jonathan in our everyday lives had screwed Jace up and he was more determined than ever to not let him control our lives. I leaned in and kissed his lips, moving along his jaw and finally back to his mouth again.

"Go to sleep, Jace. I love you."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So, it looks like Jonathan is after more than the belt. Stay tuned to find out what happens! Thanks for reading and let me know what you thought of this chapter! :)**


	12. Chapter 12

I woke up the next morning and decided to make Jace breakfast before he headed to the gym for the day. I had a few appointments set up for the afternoon and I couldn't wait to start photographing my first clients. When I stepped into the kitchen, Isabelle was sitting on the counter and Simon was standing between her legs. It looked like they were having a pretty intense conversation, but I wanted to get started on breakfast. When I saw Isabelle smile and kiss him, I knew I could interrupt.

"Good morning, you two," I said in my most chipper voice possible. Simon turned and leaned against the counter as Izzy wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Hey," Isabelle said with pity in her voice. "How are you doing?"

"I'm honestly fine. I had a great night, aside from the incident and I gained clients. I got to show my work and I opened my own studio. It was one of the best nights of my life. I'm not going to let Jonathan take that away from me."

"I wish I could get my hands on that guy," Simon said as Izzy brought her hands up to rub the tension from his shoulders. "I can't believe he's threatening to take everything Jace has away from him. He should be thanking Jace for throwing that fight and saving his life."

"I know. It makes me sad to think he could hold so much hate in his heart, but I know Jace will be able to handle it. We will all handle it together."

I poured myself a cup of coffee and then went to work on breakfast deciding I would feed all four of us. French toast was my specialty, as well as Jace's favorite, and I knew I had all of the ingredients. When I reached up into the cabinet to get the sugar out, I heard Isabelle gasp. I turned around and saw her covering her mouth and the look of anger was unmistakable on Simon's face.

"What is it," I asked.

"That little bastard left a mark on your arm from where he grabbed you last night," Simon fumed.

"Oh, don't worry about that. I'm fine guys."

"I wouldn't let Jace see that if I were you. He will go ballistic."

"See what?" We all froze and our heads snapped to the doorway where Jace was standing in his pajama pants and nothing else rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "What shouldn't I see?"

"Nothing, babe," I finally snapped back to reality and walked over to him wrapping my arms around his waist. He looked at Simon and Isabelle and I knew what expressions they were wearing. Isabelle was worried and Simon was furious.

"Okay…I'm just going to let the fact that I know you're hiding something from me go for the moment because I see the ingredients for French toast on the counter."

I giggled as I let him go and went to work on breakfast. Jace poured himself a cup of coffee and leaned against the counter opposite of Simon and Isabelle. I could tell Jace was avoiding the topic of Jonathan while Isabelle and I were in the room and could feel the tension rising. When we finally sat down at the table to eat, Jace and Simon were back to joking around and teasing each other. Jace bit into his French toast and moaned.

"This is ridiculously good, Red," he said and winked at me from across the table. "So, I wanted to talk to all of you about something." We all nodded giving him permission to continue. "I know that the Jonathan incident last night was scary and I know that he made threats that I'm sure he plans on seeing through, but I don't want you guys to worry."

"Jace he threatened Clary," Simon said. "Not to mention the gym. I'm sorry, but I don't know how you're so calm right now."

"Listen, I talked to Valentine and he's going to give me a rematch with Jonathan."

"Do you think that's such a good idea? He's after everything you hold dear to your heart and you're going to try and fuel the fire by taking the belt back?"

"No, I'm going to beat him at his own game. He thinks he can just take everything, well I'm not going to make it easy. He wants to threaten my girlfriend? Fine, we'll get a restraining order. He wants my belt? I'm taking it back. We have three months to prepare for this fight and we're going to be smart about it. We know that Jonathan gained muscle to get up to weight and that he's strong. I need to be stronger. He's fast, so I need to be faster. I will not let Jonathan Morgenstern ruin my life. I am stronger than that and he will not take anymore of what I love away from me."

I nodded and stared at Jace as the room fell silent. I had never seen him so sure of anything before. His family and livelihood were being threatened and he wasn't going to stand for that. I got up from my seat and walked over to him and sat on his lap wrapping my arms around his neck and squeezing tight. I pulled away to look into his golden eyes.

"We will do anything you need us to do," I said as I ran my hands through his hair because I knew it relaxed him. "Whatever you need, whenever you need it, we'll be there. If you want me to get a restraining order we can. I definitely have proof that he threatened me."

"What are you talking about?"

"I have security footage of the whole thing and this," I stood up and turned so he could see the back of my arm. I was expecting to hear plates crashing against the wall, but when I turned back around, all I saw was a broken man. His head was hanging and his shoulders were shaking. I stood in front of him and rubbed his back looking over to a shocked Isabelle and Simon. I silently asked them to leave for a moment and they understood. "Shhh, baby, it's okay. I'm fine, we're all fine."

"It's all my fault," he said finally looking up into my eyes. I sat on the table in front of him and took his face in my hands forcing him to look me in the eyes.

"Don't ever say that again. None of this is your fault. Jonathan is a sick and twisted excuse of a man who is threatening everything you have. You need to look at the positives. We know what he's trying to do now and we can stop him. I never want you to think that anything that happened last night was your fault. Do you understand me?"

He nodded and I pulled his face toward mine for a kiss. His hands gripped my waist like he needed something to anchor him to the ground and pulled me onto his lap. I wrapped my arms around his neck and held him tight as we continued to kiss. I don't know how long we sat there lost in each other, but when we finally pulled apart, the tears on my face were dry and Isabelle had cleared the dishes from the table.

"What are you doing today," he asked.

"I have a couple of appointments this afternoon, so I figured I would hang out at the gym until then."

"I want to teach you some moves for self-defense. I want you to be prepared for anything." I tensed in his arms. "Don't be scared, Clary. You're going to be fine. I won't let anything happen to you, but that doesn't mean that you shouldn't know a few things so that, if I'm not with you, you'll be able to at least defend yourself."

"Okay, I know you're right. How about I come over after my appointments and after the kids class and you can teach me a thing or two."

"That sounds perfect." He leaned in to kiss me again softly. "Go get ready. We're leaving in twenty minutes and don't forget to pack a bag of clothes for your lesson."

o.O.0.O.o

Later that night, I walked next door after my appointments, ready for Jace to teach me how to defend myself. I walked through the door and noticed that Jace wasn't on the main floor. Simon was mopping the mats and moving the punching bags along the wall. He waved at me as I passed him into Jace's office. Jace was sitting facing the large framed picture of him when he won the belt for the first time. I snuck up behind him and covered his eyes.

"Let me guess," he said and I could hear the smile in his voice. "About five-three, red hair, green eyes and the most amazing girlfriend in the world?"

"You forgot 'amazingly-talented photographer,' but I'll let that pass," I said as I lowered my hands and spun him around to face me. I leaned down to kiss him and he grabbed onto me for dear life.

"I missed you today."

"You're weird because I've been next door all day and I just saw you a couple of hours ago."

"Oh, so you didn't miss me?"

"Nope." I smiled as he feigned disappointment. "Of course, you big baby. I always miss you when I'm not with you."

"That's what I thought." He smirked as I playfully slapped him on the chest. "Alright, alright, let's get this lesson going, shall we?"

We walked out to the main floor as Simon was dropping the last bag against the wall.

"Nice of you to join me after all the work is done," Simon said as he placed his hands on his knees and breathed deeply.

"Stop complaining," Jace shot back. "Clary, go to the locker room and change."

I nodded and walked into the locker room. I changed into yoga shorts, a sports bra and a tank top before heading back out to the mats where Jace and Simon were grappling.

I could hear them laughing as they alternated control. Finally, Jace was able to gain control and submit Simon. I clapped and laughed as they helped each other up and walked over to me.

"As much as I would love to stick around and watch Jace get his ass kicked by his girlfriend," Simon said, "my girlfriend is waiting for me. I'll see you guys tomorrow."

"Bye, man," Jace said as I waved and Simon walked out the door.

Jace took my hand and led me to the center of the mat. We stood there for a while before he pulled me into his arms and I wrapped mine around his neck. We started to sway to the music that was playing over the sound system. I could feel Jace's lips meet my neck and move up to my mouth. My fingers found his hair and we stood there, lost in each other for what seemed like hours. I finally was able to come to my senses and push him away.

"You're supposed to be teaching me how to defend myself," I said trying to catch my breath.

"Ugh, fine." He stepped back and looked me up and down. "Okay, stagger your feet." I did as he said and he stepped forward placing his hands on my hips. "Square your hips and raise your fists." He took my fists in his hands and moved my thumbs. "You'll break your thumbs if you tuck your thumbs into your fists. Okay, your stance looks pretty good. Now, take a small step with your front foot, your left foot, then turn your torso to throw a right jab."

He held up his hands and I threw a punch, according to his instructions, into his raised hand. He jerked back and shook out the hand I punched with a smile. He chuckled and a wide smile spread across my face.

"Damn, Red. We'll make a fighter out of you yet."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! I am so sorry that I haven't posted in a while, but it seems that every time I have absolutely nothing to do, I can't write a word. So, I'm back at school and can write again. :)**

**Let me know what you think and thank you again so much for reading! :)**


	13. Chapter 13

Simon and Jace were essentially living with us at this point and so far we hadn't had any problems. However, four people with one bathroom could be a challenge. Isabelle and I had discussed one of us moving out, but had decided to wait at least until after Jace's rematch with Jonathan.

It had been two weeks since my studio had opened and the business was starting to pick up. I had a few weddings scheduled later in the month and even a surprise engagement shoot later in the week. I loved photographing weddings and couldn't help but think of my own wedding one day. At this point, there wasn't a doubt in my mind that Jace was the man I was meant to spend the rest of my life with. I couldn't explain it and I knew we had only been together for a few months, but he was it for me.

Having the boys at the apartment with us was great, but we ran out of food so fast I was making trips to the grocery store every few days. I guess that's what we get for dating two professional fighters training for a fight.

Jace and Simon had been working extremely hard these past couple of weeks to get Jace ready for his fight against Jonathan. They were going about everything differently this time around. There was no room for error and they knew what they were doing. Hodge had stepped in as Jace's trainer and Max had been hanging around the apartment with me more often. I loved that little guy.

I walked through the aisles at the grocery store, dropping two of everything in my basket. I looked down and laughed at the ridiculous amount of food piled in my cart. Suddenly, I felt a chill rush through me and knew something was amiss. I turned around to see Jonathan standing behind me with his hands in his pockets and a sinister smile spread across his face.

"So, golden boy thinks he can take the belt back," Jonathan said stepping towards me. I tried to turn and walk away, but he darted in front of me and I froze.

"I don't understand why you hate Jace so much," I said with sass. "You should be thanking him for saving your life. He never should have thrown that fight."

"Saving my life? He ruined my life."

"What the hell are you talking about, Jonathan?" I was getting angry. All I wanted to do was get out of here, but I wanted to hear why he hated Jace so much.

"Yeah, sure, he threw the fight and my debt was cleared, but after the fight, Jace told everyone in the industry what I had done. Hodge wouldn't let me train with him anymore. Every gym I went to, turned me away and when my dad bought the organization, I had to practically beg him to let me fight. Even my father thinks Jace is better than me and I'm sick of it."

"You brought that on yourself. Now, if you'll please move so I can go home." I tried to push my cart forward, but he remained still. His hands gripped the side of the cart and flung it to the side as he rushed me. He grabbed me around the waist with one arm and covered my mouth with the other. I looked around frantically trying to see if anyone was seeing this. The store was mysteriously empty.

"I wonder what Jace would do if he found out that you ran away with me. He would probably stop fighting all together. The gym would be nothing without him and his life would be ruined. Maybe if I take you, everything else will just fall into place."

As he started walking me towards the door, he was holding me in front of him with his arms wrapped around me. He had made the mistake of not restraining my arms though and I jammed an elbow into his ribs. His grip loosened and I stomped down on the instep of his right foot. He cried out as I brought my knee to his groin.

An employee at the store finally noticed what was going on and rushed over to me. He informed me that the police had already been called and they would be there any minute to take Jonathan away. He escorted me to a back room where I sat and called Jace.

"Hey, Red," he answered after the second ring.

"Jace," I whispered.

"Clary, what's wrong? Tell me, baby."

"I don't want you to freak out, but Jonathan tried to take me at the grocery store just now. The police are on their way and I fought him off, but I just really need you with me right now."

"Okay, I'll be there in a few minutes, just don't try to talk to him, okay?"

"Yeah, okay. I love you."

"You have no idea how much I love you, babe."

I hung up the phone and waited for Jace to arrive. Ten minutes later, I heard shouts coming from the other side of the door. I looked out the window and noticed Jonathan sitting in a chair with his hands cuffed together. Simon was standing over him shouting and pointing his finger in Jonathan's face. Jace was holding him back until he saw me through the window in the office. He said something to Simon and he instantly backed off as Jace walked toward the office I was sitting in. The door flew open and Jace fell to his knees in front of me. His hands ran over my face and arms to make sure I wasn't hurt. I finally took his face in my hands and forced him to look in my eyes.

"Jace, I'm fine," I told him. "You taught me how to defend myself and I did. I'm going to press charges and there's no way he'll ever try to hurt me again."

"Babe, you'll have to go to court and testify," he said.

"I don't care. I will do anything to stop him and he needs to be stopped."

Jace nodded as he stood, bringing me with him. He wrapped his arms around me and held me to him for a few minutes before there was a knock on the door. A police officer poked his head in and asked for my statement. After I told him what happened, the other two officers escorted Jonathan out of the store and into the back of a cop car. I was informed that they would be in contact with me about where to go from there. Then I hopped into Jace's car after handing my keys to Simon so he could drive it back to the gym.

When we got to the gym, Jace and I went straight to his office. He sat down in his chair and opened his arms to me. I curled up in his lap as he held me. No words were needed. We just needed to be there with each other to reassure ourselves that we were okay. The phone rang bringing us out of our trance.

"Angelic Power," Jace answered. "This is he…yes…I understand…Thank you…I'll be in touch." Jace put the phone down and I turned my head to face him. "That was Valentine. He said that Jonathan was going to be stripped of his title and there would be an interim champion decided in a fight in two weeks. I will still get my shot at the belt in two months, but Jonathan Morgenstern will never fight again."

I jerked forward, wrapping my arms around his neck and squeezing tight. "Jace, that's wonderful," I exclaimed and pulled back to look at his face. "Why don't you seem more excited?"

"I am, I just wanted to fight him and prove to him and myself that I was too wrapped up in the first fight to take it seriously. I was so sure I was going to beat him and I didn't train the way I normally would have, but I was so ready to prove him wrong and make him see that he couldn't hurt me anymore. I don't even care about the title anymore."

"Jace, don't you see? You beat him. We won. He will never be able to take anything away from you because he was stupid and let hate enter his heart. He blames you for everything that went wrong in his life when he should be looking back and realizing that it was all on him." He looked away for a few seconds before I turned his head to face me again. "Why do you love fighting?"

"Because I'm good at it." I smirked and smacked his chest playfully.

"I'm serious, Jace. What is it about getting punched in the face and your limbs bent in weird positions that makes you keep coming back for more?"

"It's hard to explain, but when I'm in the ring and the fight is about to begin, when the announcer is making introductions and I'm looking across the ring at a guy who looks like he wants to kill me, a sense of calm washes over me. I forget everything that happened before I walked up those steps and don't worry about anything that happens after the bell rings. All I think about is maintaining control. The ring is the one place in my life where I feel like I have control. I and I alone control the outcome of the fight. It's not because I love hitting people, but it is because I love being able to control something. I love being able to see all of my hard work pay off. I love seeing my friends and family off to the side after the fight, win or loose. I love seeing blood and sweat stain the mats after a tough fight because it means that I powered through and fought with everything I have."

"You see? Not once did you say you loved winning. It wouldn't have mattered if you beat Jonathan. All you would have cared about were the things you just listed and when you did loose, that was what kept you from going ballistic in your prep room."

"You're right."

"I know I'm right." He smiled and pulled me tighter against him. "Don't let one person bring you down when there are so many who love you."

Simon barged through the door and Jace looked his way. "Have you ever heard of knocking?"

"Whatever, man," Simon said waving him off. "Everyone wants to know if you guys are okay."

"We're fine," Jace said before looking back to me. "Now can you please go finish the kids class so we can go home? It's been a long day and all I want to do is go to bed."

"Fine, but if you think I'm mopping the mats and moving the bags again, you are sorely mistaken."

"Just go," Jace said as I laughed and got up from my spot in his lap.

I made my way over to my studio to make sure everything was locked up and I had everything prepared for the next day. When I came across the picture of Jace and I on my desk, I stopped and stared at it until Jace came by to tell me he and Simon were going home, music to my ears. I decided to leave my car at the studio for the night and hopped into Jace's car. The three of us sang along to the radio and laughed with each other the whole way home knowing that someday soon, there would be changes in all of our lives.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! Let me know what you thought and leave a review! **

**I will be doing a Simon and Izzy chapter soon, so I'm pretty excited about that. I've never done one and I think it will be in Simon's point of view. Let me know what you think about that.**

**Oh and don't worry! Jonathan isn't going to just disappear after all of this. He will be angrier than ever and won't back down without a fight! :)**


	14. Chapter 14

"Red, where are we going," Jace asked as I pulled him along the crowded streets with me.

"Can you please just wait and see," I answered with a question. I stopped abruptly in front of the theater and pulled the tickets out of my purse holding them out to Jace. He looked down and examined the tickets as I watched his eyes go wide and his signature smile spread across his face.

"Are you serious?" I nodded and smiled up at him. "How did you get these?"

"I did a shoot with them once. All I had to do was call their manager and he gave me two tickets. Plus, it didn't hurt that I mentioned the tickets were for Jace 'The Angel' Herondale."

He pulled me to him and lifted me from the ground spinning me around. "Blink 182 was my first concert when I was fifteen. You actually called my favorite band's manager to get me tickets?"

"Of course, we've been going through a lot lately and you deserve to let off some steam. What better way than to see your favorite band in a small venue on the tenth anniversary of their self-titled album?"

"You are seriously the greatest person ever." He leaned down to press his lips against mine as I wrapped my arms around his neck. We finally pulled apart and made our way into the theater. Once we entered the space, Jace pulled me along behind him so we could make our way toward the front. When he was satisfied with an area, he stopped and pulled me around to stand in front of him resting his hands on my hips and his chin on top of my head.

The opening act was still on stage and we swayed to the beats they were producing from their computers. Every few minutes, I felt Jace press his lips to the top of my head. When the opening act left the stage, Jace's grip on me tightened and I knew he was getting excited. The house music began to play as we waited for Blink 182 to take the stage and I turned to face Jace.

"How long has it been since you've done something that had nothing to do with MMA or the gym," I asked as I placed my hands on his shoulders.

"Clary, I've been training to be a professional fighter since I was seventeen," he responded. "I eat, sleep and breathe fighting. Plus, I haven't had a reason to do anything else, until now."

Just then, the band made their way onto the stage and Jace turned me back around and held my back against his chest. Travis Barker raised his drumsticks over his head and counted down for the song. The first chords came through the amplifiers and the crowd went wild. Jace started bouncing behind me to the beat and we lost ourselves in the music. I could hear Jace singing the lyrics to the songs by my ear and couldn't help but smile as he relaxed and enjoyed the concert. When the final song was being played, confetti rained down in the theater and Jace hoisted me up onto his shoulders as I let out a shriek. When the final chords rang out and the band made their final farewells, I slid down Jace's back until he caught me in a piggyback position and he carried me out of the theater laughing along with me. He finally put me down when we got to the car and opened my door for me. When he got behind the wheel, he turned to face me and grabbed the back of my neck, pulling me in for a kiss. He pulled away and his eyes glowed in the dim light around us.

"I want to show you something," he said finally.

We drove for an hour before Jace pulled of the highway and turned into a residential area. It was dark, but I could tell we were near the ocean. We finally came up on the last house by the beach. Jace pulled into the garage and turned off the car.

"Jace, whose house is this," I asked.

"It's mine," he said nonchalantly as he helped me out of the truck. He took my hand in his and led me inside the house.

"Did you ever plan on telling me that you had a beach house?"

"Of course, I was, but I wanted it to be a surprise when I finally brought you here. This is the first thing I bought with my earnings from the championship and the gym. It's also the only large-scale item I've bought. I prefer that my money stay safe in case I really need it someday."

"So, why wouldn't you just tell me about it?" We were now in the kitchen and what a kitchen it was. The counters were all granite with an island in the center. The stove had six burners and there were two ovens. It was a dream kitchen.

"I didn't want to freak you out, but one day, I hope to move in here permanently one day and I want you with me."

"Jace, this house is amazing, but what about the gym and the studio?"

"We can commute, or we can move them out here. This is the house I can imagine starting my life with you in. I'm not saying we're going to move out here tomorrow, but I just want you to think about it."

"Okay." I took a deep breath and turned back to him. "Why don't you give me a tour?"

He took me through the house, which had four bedrooms and bathrooms before we came upon the master bedroom. Jace had a king sized, four-poster bed situated in the center of the back wall. On the other side of the room, the bathroom contained a large shower and the biggest bathtub I had ever seen. After my tour, Jace led me back down to the living room where we could watch a movie.

Jace put a movie in as I cuddled up to his side and he wrapped an arm around me. I turned my head to study his profile. He had to have been created in the likeness of an angel. His jaw was chiseled and his golden hair had grown quite a bit since we met. It now hung below his ears. His eyes shone in the light from the TV. This man was mine, he was my angel and I wanted him to know that.

"I love you," I said as he turned to face me. Before he could respond, I leaned forward to kiss him. Deepening the kiss, I rose up onto my knees and moved to sit on his lap. Jace's hands gripped my waist before pushing me back.

"I love you, so much," he said before leaning back in and resuming the kissing. Before I knew it, Jace had stood from his position on the couch and was carrying me to the bedroom with my legs wrapped around his waist.

The first time Jace had spent the night at my apartment, we went to bed and talked about whether or not we wanted to wait to have sex. We had agreed to wait until we were both ready and I know Jace had been ready for months, but until this moment, in this house where he sees us having a family, I knew it was time.

Jace took me to his bedroom and sat me down on the bed. He pulled away, never breaking contact and I raised my eyebrows in question.

"Are you sure you want to do this," he asked as he dropped to his knees in front of me so we were eye level.

"Jace, I love you and I want to do this," I said before taking his face in both of my hands and leaning in to kiss his lips. I pulled back slightly and whispered against his lips, "I'm ready."

.o.O.0.O.o.

I woke to the sound of my phone ringing on the nightstand. Jace was lying on his stomach with his arm thrown over my stomach. I gently eased his arm off of me, found a robe and walked downstairs to answer my phone. I looked at the screen and noticed Isabelle was calling and that I also had seventeen missed calls and thirty-two texts from her. With another glance at the screen, I noticed it was almost two o'clock in the morning.

I slid my finger across the screen to answer the call as I opened the sliding glass door that led onto the deck and sat down on a chair that faced the ocean. I could hear the waves crashing and could see more stars than I had ever seen in the sky.

"Hello," I answered with sleep in my voice.

"Clarissa Adele Fray," she shouted. "Where the hell are you? How can you think it's a good idea to not let your best friend and roommate know what you're doing and, oh, that you won't be coming home, especially with everything going on with Jonathan? Let me answer that for you. You could have at least texted me to let me know you were okay. Jesus, Clary, I've been worried sick all night."

She paused, so I took that as my opportunity to set things straight. "I'm sorry, Iz. Jace just took me to his beach house tonight to surprise me. I had no idea what was going on and I've been a little preoccupied so I didn't think to call you, but rest assured that I'm fine."

"Wait, Jace took you to his beach house? He has one of those? Why wasn't I invited?"

"Um, I don't think you would have wanted to be here tonight." I could feel the heat rush to my face as I said it.

"You guys did it, didn't you?" I remained silent. "Oh my god, you did!"

"Yes, we did. Now, can I please go back to bed, now that you know I'm okay?" I heard a muffled voice in the background and assumed it was Simon trying to get her off of the phone. "Iz, get off the phone and be with your boyfriend."

"Okay, fine. Love you, Clary."

"Love you, too. Bye." I ended the call and curled my legs up under me as I listened to the waves and felt the breeze on my face. I had a constant smile on my face and wasn't paying attention when strong hands were placed on my shoulders. I jumped slightly, but was reassured when Jace came around my front. I got up to let him sit in the chair before I curled up in his lap. He held me close as we observed the beach in the darkness.

"We should invite Simon and Izzy up here for the weekend," Jace said breaking the silence. "We could just have them bring us clothes tomorrow and we can all have a nice weekend at the beach, away from everything."

"That sounds perfect," I said.

"So, what do you think about those two?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do you think they'll ever get married? Have little Simons and Isabelles?"

"I think that's definitely where they're headed. I've never seen Isabelle like this with a guy. He's definitely her longest standing boyfriend."

"Same with Simon. He's never really had a girlfriend so I was surprised when I met her, but I think she's exactly the kind of person he needs in his life."

"I guess only time will tell, but I really want them to get married!"

He chuckled before picking me up and carrying me into the house and up to the bedroom. We were silent as we settled back into bed and fell asleep together.

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think! :)**


	15. Chapter 15

_Simon_

She held my hand across the center console while we took the hour drive to Jace's beach house. When Jace called this morning and told us to load up the car and head out there, Isabelle jumped up and down with excitement. She had been up late the night before worried about Clary. From what she had told me, she had good reason to be. I felt her head hit my shoulder alerting me that she was asleep. We made it to the beach house thirty minutes later and pulled into the driveway. Clary came running out of the house to the passenger side waking Isabelle up in the process.

Clary and Isabelle ran back in the house, leaving me to get the bags until Jace came out to help me. We greeted each other with a man hug and took the bags in the house. I was instructed to pack bags for Jace and Clary as well, since they just came out here the night before on a whim. The girls were already sitting out on the patio talking a mile a minute. It looked like they were talking over each other and didn't look like a conversation was going on at all, but I knew they understood what the other was saying.

Jace led me outside and we sat on the opposite end of the patio, out of earshot from our lovely ladies. He handed me a beer from the cooler and we sat back as we enjoyed the view.

"So, when are you going to do it," he asked breaking our silence. Jace had been my best friend for five years. We didn't like each other much when we first met, but after a while we realized we were a lot alike and got along really well, most of the time. I knew he had my back, no matter what and the feeling was reciprocated. Jace had gone with me about a week before to help me pick out the perfect engagement ring for Isabelle.

"I was thinking about doing it tonight," I replied with caution.

"Do you have anything planned?"

"I was just going to ask her to take a walk after dinner and drop down on one knee to tell her how much I love her and that she changed my life."

"Sounds good." We grew quiet again, but on the other side of the patio, Clary and Isabelle were flailing their arms around exaggeratedly while telling stories.

"Do you think it's too soon?"

"You guys have been together for six months. Hell, I'm ready to drop down on one knee right now and ask my girl to be mine forever and we've only been together a few months. I think that when it's right, you know and you obviously know that she is the one you want to spend the rest of your life with so go for it."

Just then, Clary and Isabelle came to sit with us. Izzy took my beer from me and took a drink winking at me. I shook my head with a smile before she turned to face me.

"We are going to go hang out on the beach," she announced. "If you boys would like to join us, you're more than welcome to."

She walked past me dragging her hand across my chest and shooting me a look that said I should definitely join her on the sand. Jace hopped up to follow Clary in the house as I did the same with Isabelle.

Ten minutes later, Clary and Isabelle were lying on the sand catching some sun while Jace and I tossed a football at the water's edge. I glanced back toward the girls and noticed them staring at us.

"Dude, it looks like we've got an audience," I yelled over to Jace as he followed my line of sight. He tossed the ball between his hands.

"Go deep," he yelled and I turned toward the water splashing around my knees. Jace's pass reached over my head and I dove for it catching the ball before landing in the water. When I resurfaced, I held the ball above my head and shook my hair out of my eyes before I could see Isabelle running toward me.

She crashed into me, pushing me underwater again. I laughed as I pulled her toward me. We were deep enough to where she couldn't stand, but I could so I held her up in the water as she wrapped her legs around my waist.

"Hey," she said before leaning her head forward to kiss me. I held her tight and fought the current trying to take us out to sea. "I love you."

"Well, that's good," I said with a smile. I just couldn't stop smiling around this girl. "Because I love you, too."

We made our way back to where Jace and Clary were sitting on the sand before flopping down next to them. Isabelle sat between my legs as we let the sun dry us. When we got too hot, we all made our way back down to the water. Jace hoisted Clary up onto his shoulders and I followed suit with Isabelle as we started a game of chicken, which turned into a wrestling match between Jace and me. The girls stood back laughing as we covered ourselves in sand. When I stood up from the sand, I looked over to Isabelle and gave her an evil look that said she had better run. She took of running, but I was too fast for her as I grabbed her and pulled her too me, transferring the sand from my body to hers. She let out a shriek as I lowered us into the water to rinse off.

Finally, Clary announced that she was going inside to get cleaned up and get started on dinner. Isabelle turned to give me a quick kiss before following her best friend up to the house. Jace and I followed to set up for dinner on the patio. He brought his speakers out and we turned Pandora on. I went back in the house to grab silverware and plates, but I ended up just standing in the doorway and observing the scene taking place.

Isabelle was dancing around the kitchen and singing along with whatever song was playing into a wooden spoon. Clary was standing at the stove and I could hear her singing as well. Izzy stood next to her and they sang in unison. Jace started to walk in the kitchen, but I stopped him before he could interrupt their little performance. When the song ended, Jace and I applauded and whistled. They turned around and Clary's face reddened before Jace walked over to her and kissed her deeply. Isabelle walked up to me and wrapped her arms around my neck before pecking my lips with hers.

"Clary, I hope you didn't let her touch any of the food we are about to consume," I said with a smirk and Isabelle smacked me on the chest.

"How dare you," Isabelle said. "I am an excellent cook."

"Sure, if you think pouring cereal and milk into a bowl is cooking."

"I'm sorry, Iz," Clary piped up as she turned to face us with Jace's arms wrapped around her neck. "He's right. You almost burned down the apartment once trying to boil water to make pasta."

"Oh, remember that time you tried to make French toast and you used salt instead of sugar," Jace asked.

"Okay," Isabelle shouted. "I get it, I'm challenged in the kitchen. You guys can stop reminding me now." Her brow furrowed and I pulled her against my chest. She huffed before relenting and wrapping her arms around my waist.

"It's okay, babe," I said. "I still love you, even though we'll probably be living on take out for the rest of our lives." I felt her relax and I tightened my hold on her. "Come on, let's go watch the sun set."

I led her out onto the patio and we sat on the top of the steps that led down to the beach. I reached over and took Isabelle's hand to interlace our fingers as she leaned her head on my shoulder. The sun was making its final descent to the horizon and the clouds were colored orange and pink from the sun. It was one of the most beautiful sunsets I had ever seen. I heard Izzy take a deep breath before she shifted closer to me and I wrapped my arm around her shoulder.

"This has been the perfect day," she whispered as she turned her head to nuzzle into my neck. I kissed the top of her head and squeezed her shoulder.

"Every day with you is perfect," I mumbled against her hair. She lifted her head to kiss me. We sat there for a few minutes, lost in each other until Clary and Jace came out with dinner.

"Dinner is served," Clary announced as we made our way to the table. There was an arugula salad with mango, goat cheese and vanilla bean vinaigrette. Shrimp scampi filled a serving bowl and roasted asparagus accompanied it. It was truly an amazing meal.

The sun had set and we ate by the light of a few candles and the porch light. Soft music played in the background as we ate, laughed and enjoyed the company of our friends. I sat back and observed the dynamic between the four of us. Isabelle and Clary were more like sisters than best friends and they loved each other as such. Jace and Isabelle had developed a sort of sibling relationship as well with their bickering and teasing of one another. We all fit in different ways to the group, but we had become a family in the short time we had all known each other.

We had finished eating when Clary looked over to me and asked, "Simon, when did you know you wanted to be a fighter?"

"Not until pretty recently," I replied. "I actually just took a job at the gym, thinking I could teach some classes because I had trained in jiu jitsu for a while. Then I saw all the guys training and realized that I wanted something like that to focus on and be proud of. So, I talked to Jace one day and we started training. A few months later, I had my first professional fight and the rest is history."

"Jace," Isabelle said. "What would you be doing if you weren't fighting?"

"I wouldn't be here," he said and I nodded my head knowing what he went through before he started his career. "If Hodge hadn't found me when he did, I would have been dead before I turned twenty-one."

Clary and Isabelle let out a collective, "Wow." Clary walked over to Jace and kissed his forehead before clearing the dishes from the table. Isabelle stood to help her, but I grabbed her hand and pulled her down toward me.

"Go for a walk with me, Isabelle Lightwood," I said looking into her eyes. She smiled and nodded as I stood from my chair. We walked past Jace and he gave me a nod of his head as I patted him on the back.

I led Isabelle down toward the water and started walking along the shoreline. We held hands, swinging our arms as we made our way farther away from the beach house. I dropped her hand and wrapped my arm around her shoulders pulling her closer to me as she placed her arms around my waist. I could see her looking up at me from the corner of my eye.

"What are you thinking about," she whispered in my ear. I stopped walking then and stood in front of her taking both of her hands in mine.

"I love you," I said.

"I love you, too, Simon."

"Isabelle, from the moment I met you, I knew you were going to be a challenge. I could see you had walls built up and they weren't coming down any time soon. You honestly scared the crap out of me. You are strong and confident and fiercely independent. I thought there was no way a girl like you could fall for a guy like me. I may be a tough fighter on the outside, but on the inside, I'm still the_ Star Wars_ loving, video game playing, nerd I've always been and you love me anyway. You have become my whole life and I can't imagine spending another minute of it not knowing if you'll be mine forever."

I got down on one knee as I let go of one of her hands and took the ring out of my pocket. Her free hand came up to cover her mouth and tears started falling. The light breeze was blowing her dark hair and the stars shone bright in the sky behind her. She was beautiful. I smiled up at her and took a deep breath.

"Isabelle Lightwood, I love you more than I could ever explain." One more deep breath. "Will you marry me?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So there it is! Thanks so much for reading! I can't believe how supportive everyone has been and I can't thank you all enough. I really appreciate all the kind words and suggestions so keep them up! Anyways, I really hope you liked this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Let me know what you think and leave a review! :)**

**Thank you so, so much!**


	16. Chapter 16

Jace was washing the dishes from dinner at his beach house. Simon and Isabelle had disappeared twenty minutes ago and left us to clean up. I stood back and watched as Jace moved fluidly through the kitchen. When the last dish was washed and loaded into the dishwasher, he turned to face me. Jace walked toward me as the song playing on the stereo changed and held his arms out to me. As he took my hands, Jace pulled me to him and started to dance with me while singing softly along with the music.

"Where did Simon and Izzy disappear to," I asked into his chest.

"Oh, I'm sure they'll be out for a while," he said with a smirk. "Come on, let's go watch a movie or something."

Jace wrapped an arm around my shoulders and led me to the couch in the living room.

"Why do I get the feeling you're not telling me something," I said as I took my place on the couch next to Jace and he pulled me closer to his side.

"You'll find out soon enough, Red."

"You're being really cryptic."

"Yeah, yeah, just watch the boy meet the girl and fall in love."

I giggled as I snuggled into Jace's side and watched the movie. The time in the sun was starting to take its toll as I felt myself nodding off after a few minutes. I felt Jace shake me awake as Simon and Isabelle came in the back door. Jace greeted them and yelled out that we were on the couch. They came over and sat on the loveseat to the right of the couch. I smiled at them and focused back on the movie, even though I had no idea what was actually going on. Simon laid down to face the TV and Isabelle laid down beside him. As she did so, something flashed in the corner of my eye and my head snapped to see what it was. I sat up and stared at her left hand for a minute before it registered in my mind what it was. I let out a little scream and everyone jumped as I got up and walked over to Simon and Isabelle taking her hand and raising it in the air.

"What the hell is this," I asked pulling her up to stand next to me.

"What the hell does it look like," she said as she smiled brightly. "We're getting married!"

Jace and Simon met in the middle of the room as Jace congratulated him and pulled him in for a hug. Isabelle and I proceeded to jump up and down like little girls with our arms wrapped around each other. I overheard Jace and Simon talking.

"I knew she would say yes," Jace said as he patted Simon on the back.

"Wait," I said pulling away from Isabelle and turning my attention toward Jace. "You knew about this?"

"Of course, I knew. I'm his best friend. I went with him to pick out the ring."

"And you didn't tell me?" I walked over to him and smacked him on his chest. He caught my hand and pulled me to him.

"Why would I tell you? She's your best friend and you are the worst at keeping secrets."

"That's not fair." I said as I tried to pull free of his grasp, but he was too strong for me. I finally relented and stopped struggling. "Fine, whatever. We need to celebrate. Do you have any champagne, babe?"

"Um, yeah. I think there might be some in the refrigerator."

We went into the kitchen to get champagne and flutes as Simon and Isabelle followed and sat down at the chairs surrounding the island. I poured the bubbly liquid into the glasses and Jace handed them out.

"A toast," I said raising my glass and everyone followed suit. "To my best friend and her fiancé, I am so happy you two found each other and are going to spend the rest of your lives together. I can't imagine two people who were meant to be together more than you two. Congratulations."

"Were you just practicing for your maid of honor speech," Isabelle asked around a giggle.

"Maybe, but I really am happy for you."

"And I am happy that you met," Jace said as he placed his arm around my waist and rested his hand on my hip. "Because I might have never met Clary if Iz hadn't dragged her to our fight. So thank you and congratulations."

I turned my head to face Jace and he caught my lips for a kiss. I caught Simon and Isabelle out of the corner of my eye doing the same and for a moment, it felt like everything was right in our lives. There wasn't someone trying to ruin our lives. There weren't fights that needed to be trained for. There weren't photos that needed to be edited. There was just the four of us, celebrating one of the most important moments in our best friends' lives.

o.O.0.O.o

A month later, my business was picking up and Jace was in full training mode. Isabelle and Simon were planning their wedding, which would take place in December and my apartment had become wedding planning central. We had agreed that I shouldn't shoot the wedding because I wanted to be able to enjoy it and my role as maid of honor, but I had just hired on an assistant to help me with photo editing and day-to-day business, named Sophie, so she would shoot the wedding for us. She was wonderful and was learning a lot working in the studio. I had even let her take a few jobs on her own and her work was amazing.

Jonathan had stood trial a few weeks ago and, like I expected, he was released with probation and a restraining order. Jace had ben worried that Valentine would let him fight again, but we were reassured that Jonathan would not be allowed anywhere near the organization for a very long time, if ever.

It was getting late and I was still working on editing photos for a deadline I needed to meet as I waited for Jace to finish training for the night and pick me up. Sophie popped her head in my office door and I looked up from my computer blinking to ease the strain from looking at the computer screen for so long.

"Hey, Sophie," I said waving my hand for her to come in.

"Hi, Clary," she said as she entered the office with a stack of papers in her hands. "Here are those prints you wanted to take a look at. There are a few that I think are worth framing."

I started thumbing through the photos holding them up to the light and inspecting for quality and content. I came to a photo that I had taken the week before when I was bored and shooting over at the gym. Jace was helping Max climb the rope on the back wall and the determination on Max's face and Jace's proud expression suddenly made me think of Jace as a father. I studied the photo and thought of a little boy with golden hair running around the gym with Jace chasing after him and laughing. I put my hand to my heart and took a deep breath.

"Clary," Sophie interrupted my thoughts and I snapped my head up to look at her. "Where did you go?"

"Oh, I was just thinking." I handed her the photo before going through the rest. "Can you enlarge this shot and have it framed, please?"

"Of course, I'll get right on it." She started to leave, but I stopped her.

"It's getting late, Sophie. Go home and I'll see you tomorrow." She hesitated and avoided eye contact like she was in trouble. "Did Jace tell you to not leave me here alone?"

"What? I have no idea what you're talking about." This girl was a terrible liar.

"Yeah, whatever. I'm about to lock up anyway and head over to the gym. I will be fine for the thirty seconds that I'm alone. Now, go home. I'm sure you have better things to do than hang out with your boss all night."

"Fine, but if Jace gets mad, I'm blaming you."

"Oh, don't worry. I have ways of cheering him up." I wiggled my eyebrows up and down as she giggled and turned to leave my office.

I went back to my computer to save my work and catch up on my email. The bell on the front door rang, so I assumed Sophie was leaving. When I heard yelling coming from the front, I grabbed my phone and ran out to see what was going on. I froze when I saw what was going on. Jonathan was yelling at Sophie and walking toward her. He hadn't noticed that I had come out yet, so I quickly dialed Jace's number hoping he had his phone near him. I held the phone down at my side so Jace would hear what was going on. Finally, when Jonathan lunged at Sophie and grabbed her, I snapped.

"Hey," I yelled. "Leave her alone. She has nothing to do with this. I'm the one you want."

Jonathan's head turned, but his grip on Sophie's arm didn't let up. His sinister smile chilled me to the bone.

"That's where you're wrong, Red," he said emphasizing the nickname that only Jace used. "I don't want you. I just want everything and everyone Jace has to suffer like I have. Now, not only has he ruined the past five years of my life, but he took my fighting career away from me."

"None of this is Jace's fault, Jonathan." I said looking at Sophie and giving her a slight nod of reassurance. "You're violating the restraining order right now and the cops are on their way, so I suggest you leave before Jace and Simon find out you're here."

"Oh, you think I'm scared of them?" He laughed and threw his head back as he pulled a gun out from behind his back. "Those little wannabes don't scare me. I've fought Jace plenty of times and know exactly how he fights. I made him the fighter he is now."

"You're wrong." I was eyeing the gun he was waving around like a flag and making sure Sophie stayed calm. It almost seemed as if he had forgotten she was there and I wanted to keep it that way. I knew I had to stall until Jace found us and I was loosing hope that he even would. The call had been going on for a few minutes and he still hadn't shown up. It should have only taken him thirty seconds to burst through the door and end this.

Then I saw him and Simon through the front window. Our eyes met and he raised a finger to his mouth telling me to be quiet. I then realized that the bell on the door would ring if they just burst in here and they didn't want to spook Jonathan. I moved my eyes down to the gun so they would follow my gaze and see it. I didn't want them to do something stupid. I saw them move around to the back of the building and then it all happened so fast, I didn't know which way to look.

Jace and Simon rushed through the back door and Simon grabbed Sophie before Jonathan registered what was happening. He came to my side and led us back to my office as Jace tackled Jonathan to the ground. I turned my head over my shoulder and tried to break free from Simon's grasp so I could be with Jace. They were rolling on the ground and wrestling for control. Jace landed a few punches to Jonathan's temple while holding the hand with the gun down. They started rolling again and I lost sight of the gun.

Then, everything went silent as I heard the gun go off with a thunderous bang.

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><p><strong>AN: So if you didn't like the cliff hanger last chapter, I'm sure you don't like this one even more. Thank you so much for reading! Let me know what you thought and I'll try my best to update as soon as possible! :)**


	17. Chapter 17

Everything moved in slow motion. People were yelling around me, but I couldn't hear a word they were saying. The only thing I cared about was getting to Jace. I saw his body sag against Jonathan and that's when my worst fears were realized. I let out a soundless scream as Simon met me on the way to Jace. He rolled Jace away from Simon and into my waiting arms before going after Jonathan who was knocked unconscious after the first hit to the temple, but that didn't stop Simon. He was raining down punches and trying to hold back his tears when Sophie pulled him away from Jonathan. Jace was lying on the floor with his head cradled in my lap. His eyes were fluttering open and closed as I sobbed and ran my hands through his hair. I was pressing my hand to the wound on his right side trying to stop the bleeding, but my hands just were covered in blood. Simon took off his shirt and pressed it on my hand. I took my hand and helped him keep pressure on the wound. I finally looked into Jace's eyes and noticed him trying to talk.

"Shhh," I cooed running my hand over his face and through his hair trying to memorize everything about him. "Don't speak, baby. I love you, just don't speak. You're going to be okay. You have to be okay."

I knew I was rambling, but I couldn't help it. When the paramedics and police finally showed up, Jace was fading fast. The paramedics started to pull him away from me and I knew I had to let him go, even if it was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. I held his hand as they placed him on the stretcher and brought it to my lips before letting go so they could put him in the ambulance. I stared at him and before they closed the doors, he mouthed, "I love you."

The police had Jonathan cuffed and were leading him out to their car. One of them tried to ask me for my statement, but I couldn't even comprehend what was happening at that moment. I felt Simon's arm wrap around me.

"She isn't answering any questions right now," he stated firmly. "I'm taking her to the hospital, right now and you can wait to ask her any questions until she's ready."

With that, Simon led me to his car and helped me into the passenger seat. He was already on the phone with someone as Sophie got in the back seat. I was numb. I couldn't even cry anymore. As I watched the road and listened to one side of Simon's conversation, I sat there staring straight ahead trying not to think about what had just happened.

I couldn't think about Jace being shot. I couldn't think about what was happening in the hospital right then. I couldn't think about the possibility that he might not make it back to me and the one thing I had waited so long for would be over before it really started.

Simon skidded to a stop in front of the hospital and ran around the car to help me out. He practically carried me through the doors and shouted at the nurse's station that we were here for Jace. She told him to wait in the waiting room and we would be notified when they knew anything. With a huff and scowl toward the nurse, Simon led me to a chair in the waiting area, while Sophie curled up on the couch. We sat down and did exactly that, waited.

At some point, Isabelle burst through the doors and took the seat on the opposite side of me. She and Simon both held my hands as I leaned my head on Isabelle's shoulder. I finally started crying after an hour of waiting. Isabelle held me to her and ran her hand over my hair trying to comfort me, but nothing would comfort me until I had Jace in my arms.

It seemed like we had been in that waiting room for days when a doctor came out and said Jace's name. We all jumped up and rushed toward him when he asked if we were family.

I started to explain when Simon interrupted me, "She's his wife." Hearing Simon referring to me as Jace's wife sent chills through my body, good ones, but then I remembered where we were and turned back toward the doctor.

"Your husband is very lucky," he said. "We just took him out of surgery where we removed the bullet and made sure there wasn't anything severely damaged. Somehow, the bullet missed everything it needed to miss and Mr. Herondale should make a full recovery. He's getting situated in his room right now and we're going to wait for him to wake up on his own and let the drugs wear off. I'll have someone come let you know when he's settled and you can go see him."

I nodded along with his words and when he said that Jace would be alright, my heart soared. He nodded after he finished and turned to leave when I nodded back. The flood gates opened at that moment and I turned to Simon sobbing into his chest. He wrapped his arms around me and I could feel his shoulders shaking as well. Isabelle wrapped her arms around both of us and held us while we cried.

When we all finally pulled apart, I looked at Simon and smiled. He was going to be okay. Jace was going to be okay. We sat back down and waited for someone to come get us. Sophie announced that she was going to head home and Isabelle offered to take her when she realized her car was still at the studio. Isabelle promised to return quickly, understanding that Simon and I would need this time with Jace.

A nurse finally announced that we could go back and see Jace. Simon held my hand as we followed her through a maze of halls before she stopped at a door and led us inside. I wasn't ready for what I saw in that hospital room. I wasn't ready to see my strong and confident boyfriend looking so weak and helpless in the sterile room with tubes and machines making sure he was still alive.

I collapsed into the chair next to his bed, taking his hand in mine and lowering my head to our joined hands. I cried silently, taking deep breathes to try and calm myself. I felt Simon rubbing circles on my back before I finally looked up at Jace again. I ran my hand over his face to make sure that he was really there.

The next twelve hours flew by as I sat in the chair next to Jace's hospital bed watching to make sure I didn't miss when he woke up. The doctors told me that the medication was strong and that it would take a while for him to wake up, but that didn't calm my nerves. Isabelle and Simon took shifts sitting with me and trying to make me eat, but I couldn't focus on anything that had to do with me leaving the room or taking my eyes off of Jace.

I finally let myself fall asleep as I rested my head on the bed against Jace's hip. I started awake when I had a dream about a little boy with golden hair and green eyes. I looked at the clock and saw that it was almost noon. Jace was still asleep. A nurse came in to check on him and assured me that he would wake up soon. Simon came up behind me with Isabelle and sat down at the foot of Jace's bed.

"Hey, bud," he said looking at Jace's face. "I know that you're probably in a lot of pain right now and you need to let your body heal, but if you could just open your eyes for a minute to convince your crazy girlfriend over here that you're okay, that would be great."

I laughed for the first time in twenty-four hours and stuck my tongue out at Simon before Isabelle stepped up to the other side of the bed.

"As much as you annoy the crap out of me," she said with her hand on Jace's shoulder. "You love my best friend and I really need her to be happy, so please, just wake up."

It was then that I felt Jace's fingers twitch in my hand and grasp my fingers. I looked up at his face and saw his eyes fluttering. I jumped up from the chair, never letting go of his hand and peered down as his golden eyes opened and he smiled weakly up at me. My other hand came up to my mouth as I tried to stifle a sob. I closed my eyes and let the tears fall before collapsing onto the bed and wrapping my arms around Jace's neck.

"Oh my God," I said between sobs. "You're awake! Oh, baby, I was so worried." I pulled back to look in his eyes that were shining with unshed tears. "I love you, so much."

"I love you, Clary," those were his first words after he woke up and I lost it even more than I already had. When his arms came up to wrap around me like a cocoon, I never wanted him to let go.

The doctor and a nurse came in a few minutes later to check and make sure everything was the way they wanted it. When they left, the doctor assured us that Jace would be able to leave in a few days. Simon finally came to the other side of the bed and shook Jace's hand.

"Can you, please, never do anything like that again," he asked with a small smile and Isabelle holding onto his arm.

"I don't think I'll need to," Jace said before glancing toward Isabelle. "Iz, can you please get him out of here and put some food in him. I can tell he hasn't eaten and he has a fight he should be preparing for."

Isabelle raised her hand to her forehead to salute him and said, "Yes, boss," before dragging Simon out of the room.

Jace and I lay in silence for a while, while he ran his hands along my arms and I buried my face into the crook of his neck.

"I guess I won't be fighting for a while," he whispered into the empty room and I turned my head to look into his eyes. There was a sadness hidden beneath the hope I could see on the surface.

"Is that okay with you," I asked treading lightly.

"For now, but there is no way I won't fight again someday. If I let that happen, then I'm just letting Jonathan get what he wants."

"You're an incredibly brave person, Jace Herondale." I placed my hand over the spot where a bandage covered his wound. "Does it hurt?"

"Not anymore, now that I know that you're okay and I have you in my arms." I looked at him with a questioning stare. "Okay, it hurts a little, but less with you here." He took a deep breath before asking his next question. "What happened to Jonathan?"

"Simon knocked him out and he was arrested. I don't think any amount of money or power is going to get him out of this one. Valentine called earlier and apologized, wishing you a speedy recovery. He said he can't wait for you to get back in the octagon."

"Let's just think about that later. I'm getting tired, actually. I'm just going to take a nap."

I nodded and watched as he fell asleep and peace swept over his face. I rested my head on his shoulder and watched him sleep knowing that if we could make it through this, we could make it through anything. Jace was awake and would be okay. My fairytale wasn't over just yet.

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><p><strong>AN: I just couldn't leave you guys hanging after I wrote this, so I am posting twice in one day! I hope this puts your minds at ease. Thank you so much for reading! :)**


	18. Chapter 18

I rolled over to find the other side of the bed cold and jumped up to find Jace. It had been a month since he came home from the hospital. He ended up staying in the hospital for a week after he woke up because the doctor told him he had to be able to walk on his own before he could leave.

The past month had been filled with struggle and triumph. The first time Jace stood up from his wheelchair and walked across the hall in the hospital was like watching my own child learning to walk. We knew it was going to be difficult, but Jace was determined to get back to where he was before he was shot. Today would be the first day that Jace would go to the gym and actually be on the floor. He wasn't allowed to train or anything, but he could oversee the classes and the guys training in the morning and do some lift cardio. I knew he was excited because he looked like a kid on Christmas Eve the night before. I'm not even sure if he slept.

Jace was in the kitchen where he was cooking breakfast and listening to music with his headphones. I walked up to him and wrapped my arms around his back subconsciously placing a hand on the spot where his bullet wound was. I found myself doing that a lot lately, almost like I needed a reminder of what we had gone through and that we did, in fact, make it through.

He turned to face me and took his headphones off smiling down at me.

"Good morning, Red," he said leaning down to kiss me.

"What are you doing," I asked when he lifted his head. "You should be resting and I should be the one cooking for you."

"Babe, it's been a month. I love you for being worried, but it's time that I start doing things for myself again and you need to stop worrying about me. Go to the studio. Take some pictures." He raised his eyebrow at me. "I know you haven't even picked up your camera in the last month."

"I haven't needed to. Sophie has stepped up and taken care of everything at the studio so I could take care of you."

"Yeah, and now I'm all better." I raised a questioning eyebrow back at him. "Okay, so I'm not all better, but I am getting there. Look, I can walk around and everything." He walked away from me to prove his point stopping by the island and looking from the counter to me, and back again. "How much do you want to bet that I can jump up on this counter right now?"

The counter was about four feet high and, before Jace was injured, I knew he could jump at least that high, but now I was like a worried mother.

"Jace Herondale," I said in my most motherly voice. "If you so much as think about jumping up on that counter, you can forget about going to the beach house this weekend."

"What? Am I four years old now?" He asked with a smirk. I knew I was being unreasonable and he could probably do it, but that wasn't the point. The point was that a month ago, he had a bullet lodged in his body after he tried to wrestle a lunatic with a gun. "Just turn away if you don't want to watch because I'm doing it."

Before I could even protest, Jace swung his arms back, bent his knees and leapt off of the ground firmly landing on top of the counter. He raised his hands above his head and let out a triumphant yell before Isabelle and Simon came in the kitchen.

"What's going on," Simon asked looking around the kitchen trying to figure out what just happened.

"And why are you standing on the counter," Isabelle added.

"Oh, asshat over here decided to box jump the counter this morning," I said as I stormed out of the kitchen and back into my bedroom.

I realized that Jace would go back to normal faster than a normal person because of the shape he was in, but that didn't mean I wasn't worried about him hurting himself by pushing himself too far, too soon. As I turned on the shower, I sat on the edge of the bathtub and let reality sink in. The truth was, I didn't want to leave Jace because I was still worried about loosing him. I watched the light go out of his eyes when he got shot and that was something I never thought I would see. He was supposed to be there every day of my life and live the life I had imagined for us and in that moment, it felt like it might not happen.

After a few minutes, I heard a knock on the door, but I didn't answer. Jace slowly opened the door and saw me sitting on the bathtub. He walked up to me and nudged my shoulder so I would scoot over as he sat down next to me. Taking my hand in his, he brought it up to his lips and kissed it.

"I'm sorry, baby," he whispered against my fingers as I took a deep breath.

"Jace," I said still looking straight ahead. "I know that you need to start getting back in shape and getting back to your normal life, but it's hard for me watch you knowing that, a month ago, you were lying in a hospital bed."

"I know you're worried, Clary, but I need to keep my strength up to stay healthy. I got cleared by the doctor and I can't lay around all day anymore. Don't get me wrong, I have loved hanging out with you every day, but we need to get back to normal."

"I know, I'm just scared." I dropped my head to my hands and Jace rubbed circles into my back trying to comfort me.

"You don't anything to be scared of anymore. Jonathan is in jail. We don't have to worry about him anymore."

"I'm scared of loosing you," I said lifting my head to look into his golden eyes. "You almost died, Jace and I was sitting on the floor with you. While you were in the hospital, I was constantly overcome with the worry that you wouldn't come back to me. I didn't want our story to end like that and now, all I can think about is loosing you one way or another."

"Clary, look at me," he took my face in his hands forcing me to retain eye contact. "You are no going to loose me, okay? I'm here. We're here. I didn't die that night and neither did you, so we are going to live our lives the best way possible. I am going to love you for the rest of my life. We are going to get married one day and have a bunch of little redheaded kids running around the gym and studio. We are going to live."

I closed my eyes and nodded as Jace kissed my forehead and pulled me to him. We sat there on the bathtub with the shower still running while Jace held me and all of my fears melted away.

"Blonde," I whispered into Jace's chest. "Our kids are going to have your golden hair and eyes. That was all I could think of when you were in the hospital. I imagined a little boy with golden hair running around the gym."

"That sounds amazing." Jace said as he took a deep breath.

I finally pushed him out of the bathroom so I could shower and get ready. We had agreed that I would come to the gym and shoot for a little while after I checked in with Sophie.

When I finally arrived at the studio, Sophie was sitting at her desk examining a stack of photos. She looked up from her work and smiled before coming around he desk and hugging me close.

"Oh my God, Clary," she said as she finally pulled away from me. "I'm so glad to see you. How's Jace?"

"It's his first day back at the gym," I explained. "He's good even if I am a little worried about him still. I'm going to head over there later if you want to come with me."

"I actually have a date tonight." She averted her eyes before I started drilling her.

"What? Who with?" I stood with my hands on my hips and a huge smile on my face. Sophie was kind of shy and reserved and this was the first time she had ever mentioned anything about a guy.

"Umm, Isabelle introduced me to her cousin, Gideon a couple weeks ago and he asked me out."

Isabelle had been helping Sophie with the studio while I was gone and she was really close with her cousins so it didn't surprise me that Sophie and Gideon had met.

"That's awesome, Sophie!" The conversation ended there when I saw her getting nervous.

I made my way to my office to catch up on some work and before I knew it, four hours had passed and it was time to head over to the gym. I grabbed my camera and a spare lens before leaving Sophie to lock up the studio.

When I walked in the gym, the kids' class was in full swing. Jace was standing off to the side of the mats with Simon as they watched over the kids grappling on the mats. Our eyes met and he gave me that gorgeous smile of his before turning back to his conversation with Simon as I set up my cameras. Max ran up to me when he saw me and started firing off questions.

"Are you and Jace going to get married," he asked and I froze. I looked back to Jace and he gave me a questioning look.

"Uhh, I think you should ask Jace that, bud," I stuttered and sat down raising the viewfinder in my camera to my eye.

"Can I take a picture with your camera?" I met his eyes and I knew I couldn't deny him.

"Sure, Max. Just a couple and then you have to get back to your class so Jace doesn't get mad."

"Oh, don't worry about that. Jace never gets mad at me because I'm his best friend."

I blinked away the tears that were threatening to fall before I told Max how to use the camera. When I was finished, he raised the camera and pressed his finger on the button to take the picture. After I heard the shutter click a few times, I told him to head back to his class. I took the camera from him and looked at the screen to see what he was taking pictures of. All of them were of Jace. My favorite one was of Jace laughing at something Simon had just said and they were both bent over laughing with their hands on their stomachs.

As I went through the photos, I realized how much Max loved and looked up to Jace and I could only hope Jace would have the same relationship with our kids one day. I spent the next hour taking photos of the kids and the guys who were helping teach the class. I focused my lens on Jace a few more times than I would like to admit and by the time the class was over, I had enough photos to fill four books.

When the last child left for the night and the guys were cleaning the mats, Jace ran up to me kissing me quickly before wrapping an arm around my shoulder.

"So," I began, "how was it?"

"God, I can't tell you how much I've missed this," he stated. "I really needed this today."

"I'm glad you're back to having fun and doing what you love."

"Ditto."

He led me towards his truck as we made our way back to normal.

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! And seriously, thank you so much for all the reviews and such. I really appreciate all the support. Anyway, I hope you are enjoying the story and enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what you think and leave a review! :)**


	19. Chapter 19

"Hey, babe," I said as I walked into Jace's office after closing up the studio one night. Jace was sitting at his desk and had a look on his face that worried me. "What's going on?"

"Clary, I need to talk to you about something," he said after taking a deep breath and I instantly panicked internally. He held out his arms to me and I rushed to his side. I sat on his lap and his arm went around my waist, while I held onto his shoulders. "Valentine called me today."

I let that sink in for a moment before I came back to reality. Valentine had called Jace a few times in the months since the shooting, but Jace had never looked this way after one of his calls. His calls were usually to check on Jace and his health, but something was different today.

"What did he say?"

"Today was the first time he talked about me coming back to fight for the organization."

I gasped and said, "And is that something you want to do?"

"Well, that was the goal from the moment I woke up in the hospital, but now that it could really happen, I'm not so sure. Not too many people come back from injuries like a broken leg, much less a gunshot wound."

"Yeah, but you're not most people, babe. You're Jace Herondale and if anyone can do this, it's you." I placed my lips against his forehead to try and put his mind at ease. "When does he want you to fight?"

"He said I could have as long as I want to recover, but when I'm ready, the title shot is mine when I want it."

"Okay, so it's been three months since you got hurt. Three months until the wedding and I think you'll need a while to build your strength and stamina. I think you should make it a goal to be ready on the year anniversary of the shooting."

"I think you're right. I mean, I've been working out and rehabbing, but it's been a while since I've rolled around on the mats or threw a punch."

"How much notice does Valentine need before the fight?"

"A couple months, give or take."

"Okay, so in six months, we will come back and reexamine your situation. If you think you can fight three months after that, I will support you one hundred percent, but if you're having a hard time or you're not to your full potential, you might need to reevaluate."

He pulled me tight against him and I leaned down to kiss him. "You're awesome. What did I ever do to deserve you?"

"I really don't know." I kissed him again before pulling back.

"So, I'll talk to Simon tomorrow and we'll work out a plan to start training tomorrow."

I raised my eyebrows and looked out the window of his office to notice that the lights were off on the main floor and everyone had gone home.

"Why don't you start training now?"

"Um, because I don't have anyone to train with."

"What am I, chopped liver?" He chuckled and smiled up at me. "Come on."

I got up from his lap taking his hand and leading him out to the main floor. I turned on the lights and took the remote for the stereo from the shelf and turned on Jace's favorite Blink 182 album. He stood in the middle of the mats staring at me dumbfounded. Without warning, I ran and jumped into Jace's arms, laughing and wrapping my legs around his waist. He laughed with me as he kissed my nose.

"How do you get out of this," I asked as I tightened my grip on his waist and wrapped my arms around his neck.

"I'm not so sure I want to get out of this," he said with his signature smirk and I tilted my head and narrowed my eyes at him. "Red, I'm not so sure this is a position that I would find myself in in a fight."

I acknowledged his statement by lifting his arm over his head and clasping my hands with one arm under his arm and the other around his neck so I could swing around to his back.

"What are you doing," Jace asked after I situated myself on his back and wrapped one arm around his neck so his neck was resting in the crook of my elbow.

"I'm choking you out. What does it look like I'm doing?" He laughed as his hands came up to grasp my arms and I started squeezing on his windpipe, while pushing his head forward with my other hand. "You better get out of this or tap out before I put you to sleep."

I could feel his muscles tense as he chuckled. "Your tiny little arms aren't going to do any damage." I scoffed and squeezed tighter.

Suddenly, Jace reached around his back and grabbed my waist pulling me around him as we landed on the mat with Jace on top of me laughing. He had me trapped under him with his hands on either side of my head and my legs were still wrapped around his waist. I grabbed onto his wrists and tried to free myself, but Jace just smiled down at me and laughed. I was growing frustrated when I came up with an idea. Grabbing the back of Jace's neck, I pulled him down to meet my lips in a kiss. I quickly deepened the kiss and Jace's hands faltered. Once his hand came down to rest on my waist, I lifted my hips like Max taught me and rolled us over so I was on top of Jace and I had his arms pinned down above his head.

"Oh, so that's the way you want to play," he said smiling up at me and I gave him a small kiss on the lips.

"Do you give up," I asked as I lie down on top of him.

"Not even remotely." He smiled before flipping me back onto my back.

This continued for a few more minutes with Jace and I switching off having control until I returned to my earlier tactics flipping Jace onto his back before attacking his mouth with mine. He released my wrists and gripped my waist pulling me flush against him. I smiled against his lips before pulling back slightly and asking, "Had enough?"

He simply nodded before returning to our kiss. I brought my hands up to run them through his hair and grip a handful. I pulled my mouth from his and trailed kisses down his neck and collarbone before returning to his mouth. Our breathing was become uneven and heavy when we heard something behind us. Not wanting to lose the moment, I ignored whatever was happening until we heard a voice behind us.

"Holy shit," Simon said from the other side of the mat. "Is this what you guys do when we leave?"

I turned to see Simon and Isabelle standing there with Isabelle trying to hide the fact that she was laughing.

"What the hell do you want," Jace huffed as I scrambled to stand and fixed my clothing and hair.

"I forgot my phone and I was going to invite you to buy me a beer and pizza."

"You're so thoughtful, but I think I'll pass." He said looking up at me from the ground and winking before hopping to his feet and pulling me against him again.

"No, babe," I said. "Go have fun. Isabelle and I have things to do for the wedding anyway and unless you want to listen to conversations about flowers and dresses all night, I suggest you go with Simon."

He turned his head away from Simon and Isabelle before leaning down to whisper in my ear, "Fine, but we're finishing what we started when I get home."

I felt my cheeks turn red as I nodded and Jace kissed me before I went to leave with Isabelle.

An hour later, Isabelle and I were buried in bridal magazines and her wedding binder trying to find new ideas for decorations and flowers. We had gone dress shopping the week before and Isabelle had found her perfect mermaid style dress. My dress was also beautiful with its cream color and floor length silhouette. Isabelle's bouquet was going to be a mix of blue hues to compliment the season. It truly was turning out to be a perfect and beautiful wedding.

I was looking through a magazine when I saw Isabelle chewing nervously on her fingernail. I had known her long enough to know that when she started chewing on her nails, it was time for a distraction so I looked up and started a conversation with her.

"So, are you getting nervous," I asked and she let out a long sigh.

"You could say that," she said before returning to the destruction of her perfect nails. I reached over and took her hand from her mouth.

"What's going on, Iz?"

"Nothing, I just can't shake the feeling that this is all too good to be true. Here I am, the cynical one who didn't believe in love and this amazing guy gets thrown in my lap and makes me want to believe in everything." She wiped a tear away and I squeezed her hand before she continued. "I don't want him to wake up one morning and realize that I wasn't the one he was supposed to be with. I don't want him to regret choosing me."

"Honey, why would he ever regret you? Look at you. You're beautiful, smart, independent and the strongest person I know."

"And I'm like that because I'm damaged. I didn't have the best childhood and I had to learn to only worry about myself early on. It's always just been me and no one else. I've never had to or wanted to worry about anyone else."

"Iz, how does Simon make you feel?"

"Like I can do anything," she said letting out a breath. "Like I'm the only person in his world." I could see the worry leaving her face as she smiled back at me. "When I wake up in the morning and he's next to me, I feel like that's where I was meant to be. He says the sweetest things to me and I love how dorky he is, but he's strong too. I love watching him with the kids at the gym and I love his relationship with Jace. I especially love how protective he is of me, even though I don't need it, and has shown the same protectiveness of you. I never thought I knew what love was, but if this is what love feels like, I never want this feeling to stop."

We wiped our tears away as we laughed at how ridiculous we were being and I pulled her in for a hug. "I've missed this," I said when we pulled apart. "We never hang out anymore."

"What are you talking about? We live together."

"Yeah, I know, but Jace and Simon are always here and you're getting married and leaving me soon. I've been so busy taking care of Jace and making sure he gets back to normal that I've completely neglected the one person who has always been there for me."

"Don't worry, Clary. I've been the same way. It seems that ever since that weekend at the beach house, we've been so engrossed in our relationships that we forgot about the other important person in our lives."

I nodded before I said, "Okay, let's make a pact. Once a week, we will kick the boys out and have a girls' night like we used to. I miss you too much to keep living like this."

"You've got a deal. I need a break from those two anyway. Separately, they are awesome, but put them together and the teasing and wrestling never ends."

We laughed before cleaning up the magazines and binders and headed to the couch to watch some girly movie that the guys would never watch and eat way too much ice cream.

We were starting new chapters of our lives and moving away from the comfort of our apartment together, but we would always have that bond that was similar to that of sisters. We would always be best friends.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and let me know what you think! :)**


	20. Chapter 20

"Alright, people, we have a timeline we're working with," I yelled toward the kitchen of the beach house where Jace, Simon and Isabelle were sitting around the island drinking beer. We were all spending the weekend at the beach house so I could take Simon and Isabelle's engagement pictures and Jace and Simon both needed to take a break from the intense training they had been doing the last couple of weeks. Isabelle wanted some pictures at sunset so I needed to get their asses in gear. "If you two want beautiful, romantic pictures with a gorgeous sunset as your backdrop, move your asses out to the beach, now."

Jace laughed as Simon and Isabelle walked quickly out of the kitchen and toward the back door. He came up to me and wrapped his arms around my waist, but I pushed him away.

"Hey, don't distract me," I said before following Simon and Izzy to the beach lugging my equipment with me. Jace quickly took my equipment from me and helped me set up on the beach.

With Isabelle being a photographer herself, taking her picture was more like her bossing me around and telling me when to press the shutter button. I took pictures of them running in the water and splashing each other. There were a few where Simon had Isabelle in a cradle position while he dipped her low to the ground and kissed her. Simon drew a heart in the sand and wrote their names inside it with their wedding date. I laughed at the cheesiness as I took the picture just as the tide rushed toward it. What I knew was going to be my favorite shot was one of the last shots I took just before the sun dipped below the horizon. Simon and Isabelle were standing in the ocean with the water up to their calves and were facing the sun. Isabelle was tucked into Simon's side and leaning her head on his shoulder while he kissed the top of the head. I couldn't see their faces, but I could see how much they loved each other in their body language.

When I was satisfied that I had all the shots I wanted, I called for Simon and Isabelle to come inside for dinner. I set my camera down on the blanket I had laid out on the sand and turned to see Jace standing on the steps leading from the back patio to the sand watching me. Running up to him, I jumped and he caught me so I could wrap my legs around his waist while I laughed.

"I love watching you work," he said before kissing me. "You get this look on your face when you get the perfect shot and it's amazing to watch."

"Thanks, babe," I said through my smile. "I love watching you work, too."

I waggled my eyebrows up and down as Jace laughed and pulled me in to kiss him again. I lowered my legs back down to the ground, knowing Simon and Isabelle would be walking up any minute, but didn't remove my lips from his. Instead, I grasped the back of his neck and held him to me a second longer before our friends ruined the moment. When I heard a throat clearing, I tore myself from Jace and lowered my head to rest on his chest. His arms wrapped around me as he rubbed my back in long strokes. When I finally pulled myself together, I turned to see Isabelle and Simon staring at us like we had three heads.

"What," I snapped when no one moved or said anything.

"Nothing," Isabelle said shaking her head to clear her mind. "You guys just really love each other, don't you?"

"I would say that's a fair assumption," Jace said looking down into my eyes instead of looking at Isabelle.

"Okay, well, let's get these pictures on the computer so we can look at them."

"Actually, Jace and I are going to go get some food for dinner," Simon said turning to kiss Isabelle. "We'll be back in a little while."

"Fine, just be careful."

"Oh, stop your worrying, woman. We're just going to get some takeout." He kissed her once more before turning to leave. "I love you, Iz."

"Love you, too, baby."

Jace turned me in his arms and his eyes were glowing. It always amazed me how they did that. He leaned down and captured my lips once more and I melted into him. We didn't need any words at that moment. The look in Jace's eyes told me everything I needed to know. I finally let go of him and he and Simon left to get dinner.

I stood there, staring in the direction Jace had walked for a few seconds before Isabelle came to my side.

"Wow," she said after letting out a long breath. "Should Simon and I leave you two alone this weekend? I've never seen you guys so lost in each other when other people are around."

"You're very funny," I said as we walked in the house and toward the small office where my computer was set up, ready for the photos I had just taken. "I just love him, so much." I tried to hide the blush on my cheeks, but she caught it when I sat down in front of my computer. "Let's just look at these pictures."

I inserted the memory card into the card reader and uploaded the photos to a folder on my computer. After a few minutes, the photos were ready to be sorted through. Isabelle sat next to me as we sifted through them and told me which ones to keep and which ones to toss. We were left with fifty or so shots that would be edited and printed for the tables at the wedding and their wedding invitations. When I got to the last pictures on the roll, I noticed Isabelle had tears running down her face.

I turned to her and asked, "Happy tears?" She nodded before laughing and swiping at her cheeks. When I turned back to the screen, I saw a picture that I didn't take. The photo was taken from a lower angle and it was of Jace and I kissing. It was a beautiful picture and as I studied Jace's face, I saw how deep we both were. There was no going back. We were it for each other.

"Did you take my camera," I asked Isabelle with an accusatory glance. She shrugged and brushed me off.

"I was inspired." Just then, I heard the door leading from the garage close and seconds later, Jace and Simon were standing behind us, examining the picture on the screen. My face flushed as they leaned toward the screen.

"Wait, I thought this was _our _engagement shoot," Simon said crossing his arms over his chest as Isabelle smacked his chest.

"Can I get this framed for my office," Jace asked with a huge smile on his face.

"Um, no," I said standing to face him. He simply shrugged me off taking my hand and leading me to the kitchen where an abundance of Chinese food awaited us.

After we finished eating, Jace pulled something out of the freezer that I immediately recognized as strawberry cheesecake ice cream. I may or may not have squealed when he came toward me with the pint of ice cream and two spoons. I noticed Simon had also gotten Isabelle her favorite ice cream. How lucky were we?

We sat on the couch and watched the fights Jace had ordered on pay per view. I was tucked safely into Jace's side and we alternated taking bites of ice cream.

"I'm bored," Isabelle huffed from the other side of the room. Jace and I laughed at the exasperation on her face.

"This is a good fight," Simon said, not taking his eyes away from the TV and she smacked him to get his attention. "Ouch, sorry. What do you suggest we do?"

"Let's have a bonfire!" We all exchanged glances and agreed silently to start a fire on the beach.

Jace and Simon went outside to gather firewood and start the fire, while Isabelle and I prepared a cooler of beer and the fixings for s'mores. Twenty minutes later, we were all sitting on blankets around a fire, drinking beer and laughing. Jace pulled his marshmallow out of the fire and blew on it to extinguish the flame. I took a graham cracker and chocolate and sandwiched the marshmallow between them before giving Jace a bite. When I pulled it away, a glob of melted marshmallow stuck to Jace's bottom lip, so, feeling bold, I leaned up to kiss him and lick it away. He was smiling brightly when I opened my eyes and settled back into him. I was sitting in between his legs with my back against his chest.

"Hey guys," Isabelle said sitting up straighter on her blanket. "I know I've been kind of crazy lately and I really appreciate everything you're doing for us."

"Yeah, you should be grateful," Jace said behind me and I turned around to hit his shoulder.

"Don't listen to him," I said waving him off. "It's the job of the maid of honor and best man to be there for the bride and groom. We're only six weeks out and things are only going to get crazier." I noticed Jace and Simon exchange a glance across the fire. When I tried to look into Jace's eyes, he turned his gaze away so I couldn't. "What's going on?"

"Don't ask me," Jace said pointing to Simon. "Ask Luke Skywalker over there."

"What's going on, Simon," Isabelle tried turning to Simon. He raked his hands over his face shaking his head. "Just tell me."

"Fine," he huffed. "Valentine called the other day to give me a fight."

"Okay, that's great, but why do you look so worried?"

"It's in a month."

I let out a gasp and turned to Jace who gave me a small smile and pulled me closer to him.

"In a month," Isabelle asked. "So two weeks before the wedding?"

"Yeah," Simon said trying to reach out for her, but she pulled away. "Iz, I promise if I could change it, I would, but I'm one fight away from getting a title shot and I'm not in a position to turn anything down right now."

"So, what do you propose we do?" Isabelle scrambled to get up from the sand.

"What do you mean, Iz?" Simon hopped to his feet and placed his hands on her shoulders. Jace and I sat back and watched the scene unfold in front of us, holding our breaths. "It's not that big of a deal. It's two weeks before the wedding, not the day of it. Everything is going to be fine."

He pulled her into his arms and ran his hands along her back, trying to calm her down. "So help me, Simon, if you have a black eye on our wedding day…" She trailed of as he chuckled and Jace and I let out the breaths we had been holding.

"Alright," I said raising my beer bottle in their direction as they lowered themselves back to the sand. "Let's try and forget about MMA for a few hours and have a good time tonight."

"I second that," Jace said as he kissed the side of my head.

As if it was planned, we all threw back our heads and gulped down the rest of our beers. A few hours later, it was as if we had completely forgotten about our lives back home. I had lost track of how many beers I had drank, but I was definitely feeling their effects. I turned to face Jace and sit up on my knees taking his face in my hands and kissing him deeply.

"Whoa," he said when we pulled apart. "What was that for?"

"I love you," I slurred and he laughed.

"Yeah, I think it's time to go to bed, Red." Jace stood pulling me up with him and told Simon and Isabelle we were going to bed. He held my hand as I stumbled across the sand toward the house. I lost my footing and almost fell to the ground before Jace scooped me up and carried me the rest of the way.

Jace carried me up the stairs as I rested my head on his shoulder and observed his strong profile. He laid me down on the bed and pulled the covers up over me as I was already drifting off to sleep. I was mumbling unintelligible phrases as he knelt down beside the bed and brushed my hair away from my eyes. He told me to drink some water as he kissed my forehead and I thought that if I had to suffer through a hangover the next morning, it wouldn't be so terrible if Jace was there.

In my cloudy mind, I realized that nothing could ever be that bad if I was with Jace and we had each other.

Just before I fell asleep, I whispered, "Max wants us to get married." It was so soft, I wasn't sure he heard me until he leaned over me and kissed my lips.

"I know," he whispered against my lips. "Get some sleep, Red."

I dreamed of a beach wedding and a golden angel waiting for me at the end of the aisle.

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! Sorry it's been a while since I last updated, but I hope this chapter makes up for it. A lot of people have been asking when Jace and Clary are going to get married, but don't fret, I have a plan. It's just going to take a little while to get there. So, I hope you are enjoying the story and please, feel free to let me now what you think. :)**


	21. Chapter 21

"Red, we have to go," Jace yelled through the bathroom door. We were in Las Vegas for Simon's fight and the wedding was two weeks from today. I scrambled to finish getting ready and exited the bathroom of our hotel room.

"Calm down," I said as I came upon Jace sitting on the couch in jeans and a t-shirt from the gym, ready to stand in Simon's corner. I walked up and sat down next to him, wrapping my arms around his side and smiling up at him. "Stop being so nervous."

"I'm not nervous." He shook his head and lowered his eyes to meet mine.

"Yes you are. Look at the water bottle you're holding." Jace had peeled the label off of his water bottle without noticing. I knew this was something he only did when he was freaking out inside. "Jace, Simon is as prepared as he can be. He is an amazing fighter and has the best people in his corner. Everything will be fine."

"I know. I just want this for him so badly. He deserves a title shot more than anyone else I know."

I ran my hand up and down his back and leaned my head on his shoulder. "You've done all you can and now it's up to him." I snaked my arm around his waist and under his shirt to rest my hand over his scar. I had memorized where it was. He sucked in a breath and closed his eyes for a moment.

"Okay, let's do this." He got up from the couch and offered me his hand, which I took. We walked out of our hotel room and down the hall to Isabelle and Simon's room where I knocked on the door.

Isabelle threw the door open as she was fixing her shirt and hair. I looked at her questioningly and her cheeks turned red, which was a mental picture I filed in my memory because Isabelle blushing was a rare occurrence.

"Dammit," Jace said under his breath. "I knew I should have gotten them separate rooms." We entered the room and Simon was sitting on the edge of the bed, shirtless. "You know you are supposed to keep your testosterone pent up before a fight."

"It's not my fault," Simon said throwing his hands up in innocence. "She attacked me!"

"I don't care. Get your shirt on and let's go." Jace threw a shirt that matched the one he was wearing at Simon and I stood next to Isabelle trying to stifle my laughter. Jace came back to my side and kissed me before turning to face Simon again. "We will see you ladies after the fight."

"Bye, guys," I said. "Good luck, Simon."

"Thanks, Clary," he said as he leaned down to kiss Isabelle and she took the opportunity to grab the back of his neck and deepen. Jace cleared his throat and they separated. "I love you. Wait for me."

"Always," she whispered before he turned to leave with Jace.

"I love you, Red," Jace shouted over his shoulder before the door shut.

"Love you, too!"

The door shut and Isabelle and I went to sit on the couch to wait until it was time for us to leave. We still had a few hours before the doors opened to the arena and Isabelle wanted to be there right when they opened so she could sneak back to see Simon before things got too intense in his waiting room. It was going to be my job to distract Jace because there was no way he was going to let her in to see Simon, especially after the way we found them.

I turned to Isabelle and gave her an accusatory glance.

"What," she asked feigning innocence.

"Why would you attack Simon," I asked. "You know how serious Jace is about that stupid rule."

"I wasn't expecting you guys to be here so early. Besides, we didn't do anything."

We sat in silence for a few minutes before we decided to put the countdown show for the fight on. I watched the TV as a package on Simon played. A camera crew had come by the gym the week before to film Simon training and get a glimpse inside his life. Slow motion shots of Simon and Jace flipping tractor tires outside the gym flashed across the screen and I listened to the voices explain where Simon came from and who he trains with. Then, Simon came on the screen and said his two cents, followed by Jace who described the type of fighter Simon was and how he was going to win the fight.

Before we knew it, the phone in the room rang, informing us that a car was waiting downstairs for us to take us to the arena. Twenty minutes later, we were standing in front of our seats in the arena with passes around our necks. I looked around and found the tunnel where the fighters would emerge. I pointed toward the opening and Isabelle nodded.

"Okay, so what's the plan," I asked as we walked toward the area where the fighters waited for their fights to start.

"You are going to knock on the door and ask for Jace," she explained. "You distract him and I'll slip past you to see Simon."

"And how do you suggest I distract him? You do realize that he's extremely stressed out right now, right?"

"Exactly. Use your womanly ways to relax him."

"I'm not doing it with Jace in the hallway so you can see Simon, Isabelle."

"That's not what I'm saying, Clary. Just please, do this for me."

"Fine." I huffed and crossed my arms in front of my chest. We showed our passes to the guard who let us pass him into the tunnel. "Why are you doing this again?"

"Simon wants me to write him a message on his tape on his wrists." She said as we rounded the corner to the hallway where Simon's room was. "And, of course, I have to give him a good luck kiss."

"You two are ridiculous." She shrugged her shoulders as we stopped in front of Simon's room. She stood off to the side so Jace wouldn't see her and I knocked on the door. Hodge answered and I asked for Jace. He came to the door and smiled when he saw me. "Hey."

"What are you doing here," he asked. "Where's Isabelle?"

"I missed you," I said ignoring his second question. Before he could ask any more questions, I slammed my lips against his and grasped the back of his neck, holding him to me. His hands clutched my waist and he pulled me flush against him. I opened my eyes to see Simon and Isabelle behind us. She was writing something on his wrists and I focused on my kiss again. Jace tried to pull away, but I kept my hold firm until he removed his lips from mine and kissed down my neck. I looked back into the room to see Simon sitting on the couch giving me the thumbs up.

I pulled myself away from Jace and tried to catch my breath. He placed a small kiss on my lips before saying, "Wow."

"Yeah," I said around my heavy breaths. "So, good luck." I leaned up to kiss him one last time before I turned to leave.

"That was some good luck kiss," he mumbled as he closed the door.

I walked away and Isabelle darted out from the side of the hallway with the biggest smile on her face as she linked her arm with mine. I tried to keep a straight face, but ended up laughing right along with her.

"Holy crap," she said through her laughter. "That was the hottest kiss I've ever seen."

"Shut up," I said digging my elbow into her side. "You know Jace is going to know you were in there, when he sees Simon's tape and then he'll know that I had something to do with it. So thank you for that."

"Don't worry, he put his gloves on before Jace could see. You won't get in trouble."

We made our way back to our seats and the arena was starting to fill up. I sat back and waited for the festivities to begin. Simon's fight was the main event, so it would still be a while before he fought, but the rest of the card was looking pretty good. The theme music for the organization rang through the speakers and the lights went down as the announcer positioned himself in the center of the octagon. Just like that, the fights were under way.

I watched as eight different guys fought for a win. There were knockouts, submissions and fights that went the distance and after two hours, it was finally time for Simon's fight.

"Sweet Child 'o Mine" by Guns 'n Roses started playing and Simon emerged from the tunnel with Jace and Hodge flanking his sides. I met Jace's eyes as he walked past us and I melted a little. Unlike the last time we watched Simon fight, Isabelle and I sat firmly in our seats and waited for this to be over. We loved that Jace and Simon had something they were so passionate about, but we would be lying if we said it was easy to watch the men we loved fight someone in a cage for a living. I knew some of the fighters' wives didn't even come to the fights because they couldn't stand to watch their loved one get hurt.

We watched as Simon went through groom check and the referee smeared Vaseline all over his face. He went down the line of people who escorted him to the ring, hugging them and thanking them for being there. When he got to Jace, I could tell Jace was giving him one last pep talk. Simon turned and Jace slapped his hands down on Simon's back before he climbed the steps into the octagon.

The process was repeated for Simon's opponent and the entire time, Jace was leaning over the top of the cage talking to Simon. When both fighters were situated in their corners, the announcer went through the process of introducing Simon and his opponent.

When the referee stepped into the center of the octagon and motioned for the fight to begin, Isabelle and I sank down into our seats as I took Isabelle's hand. She squeezed my hand tight and rested her head in her other hand partially covering her eyes. Simon bounced his way over to the other fighter before taking the first swing. They exchanged blows for a minute and each time the other guy's fist connected with Simon, I could feel Isabelle flinch and tense up next to me. When Simon threw the final punch, which connected with his opponent's temple, I looked over to see Isabelle closing her eyes. Simon leaned over to rain down punches until the referee pulled him away. I shook Isabelle so she would open her eyes and when she did, she let out a sigh of relief.

Jace and the rest of the team rushed into the ring and hoisted Simon onto their shoulders. As Simon was being interviewed by one of the ringside commentators, Isabelle and I made our way back down the tunnel so we would be in the room when they got back. We sat on the couch and watched the TV as Simon answered questions about the fight. When he was finished being questioned, he grabbed the microphone and looked into the camera.

"I just want to tell my girl that I love her," he said, "and that I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with her. Let's go home, baby."

I looked over as Isabelle was swiping at a tear. She laughed as she let more tears fall.

"He told me he wants to start a family right away," Isabelle admitted out of nowhere.

"Really," I asked trying to hide my surprise. "How do you feel about that?"

"I think I want whatever Simon wants and if he wants a family, I will sure as hell give him one."

"Oh, yay!" I clapped my hands together and reached to pull her into a hug. "We're going to have little Simons and Izzys running around!"

"Calm down, it's not like I'm pregnant right now. I'm just saying it could be a possibility."

"Either way, I think you're going to be a great mom."

"Thanks, Clary." We hugged each other and laughed through our tears. When the guys came in, we separated and went to our respective men.

I launched myself into Jace's arms and he picked me up and spun me around before kissing me. I congratulated Simon, but he was too busy with Isabelle to even notice me. I smiled up at Jace and his smile made my heart melt.

"Take me home, Jace Herondale," I said with the biggest smile I could manage.

"With pleasure, Red."

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><p><strong>AN: It amazes me that I can't write for a few days and then all of the sudden I can't stop! Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed this bonus chapter today! :)**


	22. Chapter 22

I took three steps before I looked up and met his eyes. A smile spread across his face and his golden eyes bore into me. I couldn't help the smile or the blush that consumed my face as I walked down the aisle toward Simon and Jace. They say that, at a wedding, when the bride walks down the aisle, look at the groom. Even though we weren't getting married, I felt like we were with the way Jace looked at me as I walked down the aisle to stand in my spot on the other side of the aisle. Once I made my way to my place at the front of the church, I glanced sideways and shot Jace a wink.

The music switched over and I saw the church doors open to reveal Isabelle on the arm of her father. She looked absolutely beautiful. Her long dark hair was curled loosely and half of it was pinned up to meet the clips of her veil. The dress was strapless with a mermaid silhouette and just a hint of lace detailing on the bodice. Her flowers added a pop of color that brought out the blue in her eyes. I fought hard to hold back the tears as she came closer, but I finally gave up and swiped underneath my eyes.

When she finally met Simon at the end of the aisle, I couldn't mistake the looks of absolute love on their faces. Her father gave her away to Simon and they turned to face the minister. Jace and I turned toward the center to observe the ceremony. Isabelle handed me her bouquet and I smiled when our eyes met.

I really thought that I was going to pay attention to the whole ceremony. This was such a big moment in my best friend's life and, in a way, I felt like I was handing her over to Simon, as well, but I didn't hear a word that was said. How could I with Jace staring at me from across the aisle? He stared into my eyes throughout the ceremony and when the vows were being read, he mouthed the words along with them. I found myself wiping tears away, not because I was emotional for my friends, but because Jace was blowing me away with the amount of love he was showing me.

Jace never mentioned the night when I told him Max wanted us to get married. I honestly didn't know how he felt about the subject and I didn't really care. I would marry him tomorrow, if he asked me to, but if not, I would be totally content just spending the rest of my life with him. I didn't need a piece of paper to tell me what I already knew. The point was, I knew Jace was the person I would spend the rest of my life with. Something about us just worked and we didn't have to try too terribly hard to make it work. I'm not saying there weren't struggles, but, at the end of the day, we realized that we would be lost without each other.

Applause brought me out of my thoughts and I saw Simon and Isabelle kissing, signaling the end of the ceremony. Isabelle turned toward me as I handed her bouquet to her and hugged her.

"Thank you," she whispered before pulling away and I nodded. I didn't need to know what she was thanking me for. There was so much we could thank each other for and sometimes we just needed to say it.

She turned back toward her husband and he took her hand to lead her back up the aisle. The guests were clapping and cheering as they made their way out of the church.

I took two steps toward the center of the aisle and met Jace in the middle. He offered me his hand, which I took, and he pulled me to him to kiss me quickly before leading me to follow Simon and Isabelle. He turned his head to whisper in my ear, "You look absolutely beautiful today, Red. You take my breath away."

My heart melted. "You don't look so bad yourself." He smiled and kissed the side of my head as we walked out of the church.

We got into Jace's truck to follow Simon and Isabelle to the reception site so we could take pictures and get on with the reception. I was ready to have a fun night celebrating two of my favorite people in the world. Jace held my hand the entire ride, bringing my hand up to his lips to kiss the back of it every few minutes. We finally pulled into a parking lot to the reception area. The beautiful, small hotel was surrounded by gardens and trees that made it seem like a small paradise in the middle of nowhere.

I got out of the truck to meet Sophie where we were going to take the pictures. We discussed lighting and the best lens to use before Simon, Jace and Isabelle came around the corner to meet us. Isabelle had already told Sophie what pictures she wanted and Sophie got down to business quickly.

First, we took pictures with just Isabelle and I, followed by Jace and Simon. Then, we gathered in a small group to take photos of all four of us. Isabelle took a picture with Simon and Jace, and Simon took a picture with Isabelle and me. We took pictures in every combination possible, then took some fun ones. Simon picked Isabelle up bridal style and Jace did the same to me. They stood back to back and dipped us down so we were upside down facing the camera. I could tell that it was going to be one of my favorite shots. When we were satisfied that we had all the shots we needed, I talked to Sophie about the shots she should get during the reception, went through some of the photos she had already taken and told her to make sure she had a good time with Gideon. Sophie and Isabelle's cousin had been dating for a couple of months and I knew how much she liked him.

We made our way over to the small building where the reception was being held and waited outside for the DJ to announce us. After we entered the room, Simon and Isabelle had their first dance while Jace and I sat at the table. I held Jace's hand while we watched them dance and leaned my head on his shoulder, relaxing with the steadiness of his breath. He looked down and kissed the end of my nose as I scrunched it up.

Once Simon and Isabelle were finished dancing, they sat down at the table and dinner began. We laughed and talked about the day we were experiencing until it was time to give the toasts. Jace was first.

"I met Simon when he came into my gym one day and asked for a job," he began as he stood next to Simon and addressed the guests. "I gave him a job and eventually, he started training with us and we became friends. I've never known another person like him. He has my back through thick and thin and the feeling is mutual. I know what an amazing person he is and I'm just so happy that he has found someone who compliments that in him. Isabelle is one of the strongest people I've ever met. Trust me, I've got bruises to prove it." Isabelle reached up and smacked him across the chest. "See what I mean? Anyway, she doesn't give love easily, but when she does, she does it whole-heartedly. I can honestly say that my life would not be the same without both of them. So, I want to say congratulations and that I love you both so very much."

His toast was met with applause and I glared at him knowing that he held the power to captivate a room. He handed the microphone over to me as he kissed my cheek with encouragement. I stood and faced the wedding guests.

"Isabelle Lightwood is a force to be reckoned with," I said with a slight laugh. "We have been best friends for most of our adult lives and I can honestly say that I never thought we would be here today. About a year ago, though, she dragged me to this fight. She said the guy she was dating was fighting and he invited us to go. I finally gave in and went. I thought this was just another guy, but then I saw them together and realized that Isabelle Lightwood was falling in love. I had this sobering thought earlier today that I felt like I was handing over me best friend to Simon. I thought about how I felt about him taking her and caring for her and I couldn't have conjured up a better person for the job. So, today I give you my best friend, Simon. Take care of her. Love her and give me some nieces and nephews."

I raised my glass as laughter sounded around the room before I hugged Simon and then Isabelle. Sitting back down next to Jace, I let out a sigh of relief and leaned into him.

"You're amazing," Jace mumbled into my hair. He had been whispering little complements and telling me that he loved me all day. I wondered if the atmosphere was making him react in this way. I wasn't complaining though.

The music started playing and people began to make their way to the dance floor. Jace stood and offered me his hand before dragging me onto the dance floor. "Open Arms" by Journey was playing as he pulled me close and started swaying to the beat of the music. I closed my eyes as he began singing the words softly against my hair. My cheek was resting against his chest and he held me firmly in his arms. When the song ended, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned to find Max standing behind me looking older in his charcoal colored suit and tie.

"May I have this dance," he asked holding out his hand for me to take. I turned back to Jace and he shrugged with a smirk on his face.

"I would love to," I said taking Max's hand.

"Don't be trying anything funny now," Jace said as he walked away to steal Isabelle away from her husband for a dance.

Max was tall for his age and I was short in general, so he wasn't too much shorter than me. I looked down and smiled at him as the music blared around us.

"Are you having fun, Max?"

"Yeah, I got to have two pieces of cake, so that was cool and I like seeing Jace and Simon outside the gym."

"They like hanging out with you, bud."

We danced for a few moments before he said anything else.

"I think that you and Jace should have a baby." I froze at his statement.

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah. I don't have any brothers or sisters and Jace said that if he ever had a kid, it would be like my cousin. I think I would like to have a cousin."

"I hope to give you that someday, Max."

When the song ended, Max hugged me and ran off to find more cake or something to that effect. I stood in the middle of the dance floor and watched him. That kid never ceased to amaze me. I felt strong arms wrap around my waist from behind and I immediately leaned back into his chest. We started to sway to the music as Jace's lips connected with my neck. His mouth moved to my ear as he whispered, "I want to marry you."

My eyes went wide and my breathing faltered. It was the one thing I wanted most in the world, but he wasn't asking me to marry him. He was just saying that he wanted to marry me. Things were too crazy in our lives to get married then, but it was more of a promise that it would happen one day. He was the most amazing human being I had ever met and I would make sure he knew that for the rest of our lives.

"Okay."

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! I really enjoyed writing this chapter so I hope you enjoyed it as well. I know I keep dropping hints about a wedding and babies for Jace and Clary and it will happen, I promise, just not yet! Anyways, I wanted to thank all of you for the reviews, follows and favorites. It really does mean the world to me! So let me know what ou think and keep reading! :)**


	23. Chapter 23

When Isabelle and Simon got home from their honeymoon, they promptly moved out of the apartment. Jace had been trying to talk me into moving out to the beach house since then, but I just wasn't ready. It's not that I wasn't ready to live with Jace because he basically lived with me anyway, but I wasn't ready to leave the apartment. Isabelle and I had lived there for five years and it was my home. I had also just opened my studio and didn't want to be so far away. It was generally a sore subject between us.

Jace kicked his training into high gear as soon as Simon was back in the gym. It had been a month since the wedding and I was adjusting to life without Isabelle in the next room. We still had our weekly girl's nights, but they mostly happened at Izzy and Simon's new house, which was half an hour away. I was extremely happy for Isabelle, but I was beginning to miss having her right there, next to me every day. When I wanted to hang out with my best friend, one of us had to get in a car and drive instead of just walk down the hall. I didn't know every detail of her life and she didn't know mine. We weren't Clary and Isabelle anymore. We were Simon and Isabelle, and Jace and Clary.

One night, Isabelle had invited us over for dinner and Jace and I decided to stay at the beach house for the weekend. I just knew that he would try and use this opportunity to convince me to move out there for good. We went up early Friday morning so we could enjoy the day before going over to Simon and Isabelle's house. As I was cooking lunch, Jace's arms wrapped around my waist from behind. I leaned back into him and breathed in the scent of him.

"You look good in this kitchen," he said as he rocked back and forth.

"Jace, don't start," I warned. He turned me around in his arms holding onto my waist. I leaned back against the counter so I could angle my head up to look him in the eyes. "I told you I wasn't ready to move out here, which is not to say it will never happen. I just need a little time."

"And I just can't wrap my head around that. It makes absolutely no sense to me."

"It doesn't have to make sense, Jace. It's just the way I feel right now."

"Is it the house, because we can sell the house and buy a different one. I just want to start our lives together and I figured this was the first step."

"I think the first step would be getting married, but we shouldn't even be thinking of getting married right now. You have your training and in case you haven't noticed, your deadline is six weeks away. I have more shoots than ever at the studio and it's just not the time for us to take this step. We basically live together anyway, so I don't understand why this is such a big deal for you. Plus, you're training like crazy right now. You already don't get home until almost midnight and now you want to add a commute on top of that?"

"Dammit, Clary." He pushed away from the counter to begin pacing while running his hands through his hair. "We live in the apartment you have lived in for five years with your best friend. Excuse me, if I want to start our lives in our own home, even if it means for the next couple of months I get home a little later than usual. I never said I didn't want to marry you, either. In fact, I've said the exact opposite, but you're right. We have too much going on right now to think about getting married. That doesn't mean that we have to stop progressing in our relationship, though and I feel like that's what you've done. You've pressed the brakes."

"I'm really sorry you feel that way, because the last time I checked we were progressing just fine. You're the one who wants to go warp speed. You forget that I've been burned in relationships before. You can't blame me for being cautious."

"Have I ever given you a reason to be cautious?" We were standing on opposite sides of the kitchen. I crossed my arms over my chest and shrugged my shoulders. "Exactly. I have given you every reason to believe in this relationship and until now, I thought you did."

"I did." I took a tentative step toward him. "I do, Jace. I believe in you more than you could possibly know."

"Then why does it feel like you're pulling away?" I didn't want him to feel that I was pulling away, so I darted into his waiting arms. I wasn't pulling away, I needed him more than he knew.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me. I love you so much and I want nothing more than to spend my life with you." He held me tight, like he was afraid I would pull away, so I squeezed him tighter to reassure him. He dropped a kiss on the top of my head. "This house is amazing and I promise we will live here one day, but I'm not ready to leave everything about my old life behind. My best friend just got married and moved out of our apartment. She's not there anymore and I guess I just don't want to leave the one thing about that life that I still had behind. It's stupid."

Jace ran his hands up and down my arms before pushed me back so I could see him.

"It's not stupid. I just wish you would have explained this to me before. I would have understood, Clary."

"I know, I'm sorry." I closed my eyes and a tear slipped from my eye.

"It's okay. We're okay." I nodded as he wiped my tear away. "Now, kiss me and make it all better."

I started to laugh, but his lips cut me off as he brought his mouth to meet mine. I wrapped my arms around his neck and grasped the hair at the nape of his neck as I stood on my toes. Jace bent his knees to lower himself to my level. Finally, he gave up and lifted me into his arms and I wrapped my legs around his waist. He started walking in the direction of the couch and sat down. I settled myself on his lap and held his face in my hands. When he removed his mouth from mine and started kissing along my jaw and down my neck, I noticed the time.

"Hey, we are supposed to be at Simon and Isabelle's in half an hour," I said as I tried to push him away.

"Who cares," he said with a growl. "Do you realize how many times we've waited for them while they were getting busy?"

I chuckled and gave in for a few more minutes until Jace's hands went for the hem of my shirt.

"Jace, no. Come on, let's go." He made a noise of disproval before standing and lifting me with him. I lowered my feet to the ground and reached up to kiss his cheek.

We ended up being twenty minutes late because Jace couldn't take no for an answer. When we knocked on Simon and Isabelle's door, I knew that something was up. First of all, Simon and Izzy answered the door together and couldn't get the ridiculous smiles off of their faces. They seriously looked like they were going to murder us. Isabelle took my hand and led me to the living room while Simon and Jace headed to the kitchen. It wasn't lost on me that Simon was cooking and Isabelle wasn't. That girl couldn't make toast. She handed me a glass of wine as I sat down on the couch. I took a sip and noticed that she had a full glass on the table that didn't look like it had been touched.

"So, how's married life," I asked breaking the silence.

"Oh, you know…" She trailed off as her gaze was redirected toward the kitchen. Simon and Jace appeared in the doorway, carrying plates to the table. I was yanked up from the couch and taken into the dinning room.

I sat down in the chair next to Jace and he leaned over to kiss my cheek and place a hand on my knee under the table. Simon loaded up all the plates with food and passed them around the table. Once we were situated and eating, I couldn't help but notice that Simon couldn't stop staring at Isabelle. It was weird, even for them.

"Okay, what's going on," I asked setting my fork down and folding my hands. Jace leaned back in his chair and threw his arm around the back of mine, resting his hand on my shoulder. He gave it a gentle squeeze.

"Well, we invited you here tonight because we have something to tell you," Isabelle said calmly as Simon held her hand on the table. I nodded and Jace leaned forward as Isabelle continued. "I'm pregnant."

"I knew it!" I jumped up from my seat to meet Isabelle, who was already on her feet, on the other side of the table. I hugged her tightly and tried to stop the tears in my eyes from falling. _Screw it_. I let a few tears fall before pulling away from Isabelle and swiping at my eyes. Jace and Simon were shaking hands and patting each other on the back. "This is amazing! I'm so excited for you guys."

"I know," Simon said as he walked up and kissed Isabelle on the cheek, resting his hand on her nonexistent pregnant belly. "We're pretty excited, too. We went to the doctor the other day and heard the heartbeat. She cried her eyes out."

"Oh, like you were any better," Isabelle said looking up at Simon like he was the only person in the room.

Jace and I left soon after we ate dessert and made plans to have them over for dinner soon. I was already planning the baby shower in my head, hoping they were having a girl so I could let all of my girly tendencies out on this baby. I was silent for most of the ride home, lost in my thoughts and happiness for our best friends. Jace reached over to hold my hand and rubbed his thumb along my knuckles before bringing it to his lips to kiss the back of my hand. That broke me out of my spell and I looked over to him to see the far off look in his eyes. I wondered what he was thinking, but decided to lean over and rest my head on his shoulder instead of asking him. The moment was too peaceful to give it up.

I dozed off before we made it back to the beach house, but I knew what I needed to tell Jace. I just needed to find the perfect way to do it, especially after our argument earlier that day. When Jace pulled me from the truck and carried me to the house, I woke up and nuzzled into his neck, placing a tiny kiss on his pulse. He held me tight as he carried me through the house, out the back door and onto the beach.

When we were situated on the sand with me sitting between Jace's legs and my back against his chest, I took a deep breath.

"What are you thinking about, Red," he asked as he kissed my temple.

"When did we grow up," I asked rhetorically. "Isabelle and Simon are married with a baby on the way. I have my own photo studio and am in a meaningful relationship. Why can't I walk away from that apartment?"

"Because it's the last thing that makes you the old you," he whispered insightfully. "But you're not the old you. Even I can see it, Clary. You're not the scared and shy little girl who lived in that apartment with Isabelle. You're brave and confident and beautiful and I think it scares you to know that you've changed. You felt safe and protected in that apartment and now that Isabelle is moving on with her life, you don't want that feeling to go away."

I let his words sink in before I turned around to sit on my knees and take his face in my hands. "It's not the apartment that makes me feel safe anymore, Jace. It's you and I'm sorry that it took me so long to realize that, but when I heard Isabelle say she was pregnant today, I knew that it was time to let the apartment go. Those were some of the best years of my life, but I was also hiding behind the comfort of Isabelle always being there. I've learned that I can be there for myself and sometimes I can even be there for you."

"You are there for me in ways you can't even imagine, Clary. I wouldn't have been able to get through the last year without you."

"Jace, I love you and I want to make this house our home."

"Really? You'll move in here with me?"

"Ye —" He cut me off and pulled me to him, fusing our mouths together. He lay back in the sand, taking me with him. It was dark and there was no one else around. Just the sounds of the waves crashing filled my ears and I felt completely content in that moment. I was ready to live here and have a home. I was ready to walk away from my old life and live the life Jace and I wanted to live. If every night ended like this for the rest of my life, I would be completely fine with that.

Jace and I stayed on the beach for what felt like hours before finally peeling apart and heading up to bed, our bed, in our bedroom, in our house.

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! I'm so sorry I haven't updated in a while, but like I said before it's almost impossible for me to write when I'm on a break from school, which is completely counter intuitive. I tried, I really did! Anyway, we're getting close to the end, but I don't want it to end because I really love this story. Since I'm getting close to finishing the story, I don't think Jonathan will make an appearance. Perhaps there will be something about him in the epilogue, but I feel as if I've put the Jonathan part of the story to rest. Now it's about Jace and Clary moving forward in their relationship, careers and lives. **

**I'm also going to need to start thinking about my next fic soon and I've decided to keep going with the sports theme. I try to write about sports that I have a knowledge about and sports that are different from the usual ones people usually write about. If you have any ideas or have a sport you would like me to write about, let me know!**

**Sooo, there's me spiel. Let me now what you think and leave a review! I love you all! :)**


	24. Chapter 24

Today was the day. Today, Jace would sit down with Simon and Hodge and decide if he was in fighting shape. I had stayed at the gym the night before until Jace was ready to leave and, watching him train, I honestly believed he was ready to get back in the ring. I could see it in his face. He was back to being Jace "The Angel" Herondale.

I was stirring the sauce I was making on the stove, nervously waiting for Jace to come home. I bounced along to the music I had blasting from the speakers in the kitchen. Jace and I finished moving into our house the week before and I had spent the past week making it into our home. I hung pictures that I took all around the house and framed the picture Isabelle had taken of Jace and I to put in the hallway leading to our bedroom. Jace had already had the house furnished, but I had made small touches to make it homier. My favorite room was definitely our bedroom just because it was the one room in the house that I felt like I could escape to after a bad day. The sheets always smelled like Jace and it soothed me.

Just as I was thinking of escaping to the bedroom while I waited for Jace, he walked up behind me and wrapped one arm around my waist resting his chin on my shoulder. It always amazed me that he made almost no sound when he moved. Then again, the music was playing way too loud for me to hear anything else going on. He turned me around in his arms before lifting me onto the counter and holding out a bouquet of daisies.

"What are these for," I asked as I inhaled the scent of the flowers. Jace settled himself between my legs and braced himself on the counter.

"Do I need a reason to get my girl flowers," he smirked and kissed me. I shook my head and wrapped my arms around his neck. We stood there, wrapped in each other for a few minutes before I noticed my sauce starting to boil over.

I hopped down from the counter and rushed to the stove. After dishing up the food and handing Jace a plate, we made our way out to the patio to eat and watch the sun set. Jace held my hand under the table while we ate and talked about our days. I told him about the photos I was editing for a client and mentioned that Sophie was improving in the editing department, as well. He told me hat Max decided he was going to train the men in the morning and most of the guys said it was their hardest workout in months. I didn't know if he was avoiding the topic of what today was or if he didn't want to talk about the decision that was made.

"Jace, do you need to tell me something," I hinted.

"What are you talking about," he smiled and I knew he was just trying to stall, for what reason I still wasn't sure. "Fine, I met with Hodge and Simon today, as you know and we decided that I will be even better than I was before in three months. I called Valentine and he gave me a fight three months from Saturday."

"I knew it!" I jumped up and threw myself into Jace's arms. "So, where do we go from here?"

"Well, it will be just like any other fight. I'll train hard for the next few months and, hopefully, get my title back."

"I'm so proud of you." I leaned forward and captured his lips with my own. He held me close, as if he were afraid I might slip away.

"By the way, do you know what today is?" I leaned back to study his face. I had no idea what today was except for the day he decided to get back in the ring and I kind of felt bad that I didn't know what he was talking about.

"Am I supposed to know what today is?" He chuckled and shook his head pulling me onto his lap.

"A year ago today, I sat down on a couch in a club next to a fiery red head and my life changed forever."

"Oh my God." I covered my face with my hands. Jace removed my hands from my face and held them tightly in one of his hands as his other hand rested on my back. "I can't believe I forgot. I'm the worst girlfriend ever."

"Are you kidding me? You're definitely the best girlfriend ever and don't ever doubt that."

"I was just so worried about you today and it didn't even register in my mind the importance of the date. Jace, my life changed that day, too. If you had asked me that day where I would be a year from then, my answer wouldn't even be close to what my life is right now. You're giving me a life I never knew I could have and I love you so much."

"I love you, too, Red." I wrapped my arms around his neck and held him close as he ran his hands up and down my back.

He was right. Both of our lives had changed drastically in that moment. In the past year, I had grown so much and I had Jace to thank for that. I looked back on that year and realized how much we had been through together. I had no regrets, not even the time when Jonathan was harassing us because it brought us closer together. It was like we endured every single challenge that could be thrown at us so early on so we knew we could make it through anything.

I wanted a life with Jace because I had learned that a life without him wasn't a life at all. He challenged me and encouraged me in my work and in life. He was possibly the best thing that had ever happened to me, along with Isabelle. I liked being there for someone and being a support system. I liked being a part of a team. Jace and I were a team that build the other up and caught them when they fell. We were strong and could whether any storm.

o.0.O.0.o

For the next three months, Jace trained like a beast in the gym and prepared himself for his fight. I watched him every night after I closed the studio and brought the guys dinner. Jace was looking better than I had ever seen him.

Jonathan was going to be getting out of jail soon and I knew Jace was getting nervous when he shouldn't be. We still had a restraining order against him and the organization had taken every measure possible to ensure that Jonathan would never step foot within a hundred yards of an event. Valentine had basically disowned him, but Jace was still worried. Jonathan was getting out of jail the night before Jace's fight and Jace had a feeling Jonathan would try to get to him or me at the fight. I kept trying to tell him that everything would be okay and that he needed to focus on the fight, but nothing would calm him down. Jonathan didn't even know where we lived anymore, so that made me feel better. Jace? Not so much. He had a high-tech alarm system installed that had personalized codes to deactivate it. I was supposed to keep it armed when Jace wasn't home and I complied to put his mind at ease.

The night before the fight, after weigh-ins, Jace and I sat in our hotel room on the couch, watching fight videos from the guy Jace was going to be fighting. He didn't look like he was going to give Jace a hard time in the fight, but I knew Jace well enough to know that he would never admit that to himself. He went into every fight like it was going to be the hardest fight of his life.

As I was starting to drift off with my head on Jace's shoulder, I felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He answered it quickly and I listened to his side of the conversation.

"Herondale," he answered shortly. "He what?... Well, where is he now?... That's a violation of his restraining order and his probation…Okay, thank you."

He hung up the phone and ran his hand over his face, pulling me tighter into his side. He didn't say anything for a while and I let him process whatever was said on the other end of the phone. I had I feeling I knew what it was.

"Who was that, babe," I asked as I cupped his cheek and forced him to look at me. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes before opening them again and staring deeply into mine.

"Valentine," he said matter-of-factly. "Jonathan tried to get in the hotel. The police were called and he was arrested. It was a violation of his restraining order and probation so he'll go back to jail, at least for now." It was what I expected, but I knew it was tearing Jace up inside when he hopped up from the couch and started pacing. "Dammit. I knew something like this would happen. When will he just leave it alone? Leave us alone?"

"Jace, sit down, please." He sat back down and I could see the fire in his golden eyes. He was fuming. "Hold my hand." He entwined our fingers and I could feel some of the tension release. "You can't control him. He might be bothering us the rest of our lives, but that is not your fault nor can you change it unless you are able to get him a sentence longer than a year. Please, I want you to stop worrying about this. I just want you to focus on your fight and do what you do best. You control the outcome."

"I feel like I can't protect you, no matter what I do."

"Well, you shouldn't because I've never felt safer in my life and that's because of you." He nodded and pulled me onto his lap like he couldn't get me close enough. "Can you promise me something?" Silence. "Please promise me that this won't effect you tomorrow in the fight. You've worked too hard for too long to let this make a difference in the outcome of this fight."

"You're right. I love you." I turned to face him and kissed him lightly.

"I know I'm right. Do you promise?"

"I promise." He nipped at my bottom lip. "Always."

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading! I'm really excited for the next chapter even though I haven't started writing it yet. It's going to be a good one!**

**I really appreciate all of your suggestions for my next fic and I have a few ideas for my next couple of tics. I might be working on two different tics at the same time because I don't want to lose these ideas. So, anyway, thank you!**

**Leave me a review and tell me what you think! I know this chapter is kinda short, but the next chapter should make up for it! :)**


	25. Chapter 25

_Jace_

The music permeated through the closed doors that would open in mere seconds to reveal me to the crowd. I had Simon on one side of me and Hodge on the other. We were all wearing our shirts from the gym, which always gave me an incredible sense of pride when one of our guys walked out wearing one, letting the world know they train in my gym. I was in my fighting shorts, hands wrapped tight with gloves and my mouth guard in, ready to go.

Clary was right the night before. There are some things in life that I couldn't control and I had to be okay with that. One thing I did know I could control was this fight. I'm not saying that I had to win the fight, but it would definitely solidify the rest of my career. If I went into this fight after the year I had and lost, I think I might walk away from my professional career. I hadn't told Clary that and I didn't know how she would react if I lost and I did end my career to run the gym and train the guys. She would probably be as supportive as ever because she's awesome like that.

A crewmember standing in front of the door signaled that we had thirty seconds to show time. I nodded as I heard the song switch to "Bleed it Out" by Linkin Park. Clary had played it one night at the gym when we had one of our own training sessions and I couldn't stop listening to it. I started making my way through the doors while I sang along with the lyrics and started hopping from one foot to the other, shaking out my arms.

When we got to where Clary would be sitting, I glanced up and her eyes met mine. I shot her a wink and her eyes lit up as she waved to me. Isabelle, who was visibly five months pregnant, stood beside her and shot a "call me" motion at Simon. I pointed to myself and mouthed, "me?" She laughed and shook her head along with Clary. Once we were past them, my game face was on. I was a mess of testosterone and adrenaline, ready to rip someone's face off.

I stopped in front of the referee, outside the octagon for groom check. He checked my mouth guard and checked me for weapons. Then, he rubbed Vaseline all over my face to help prevent cuts. Most of the time, cuts still happened, but if we weren't vassed up, they would be so much worse. When he slapped my shoulders and nodded, I gave him a thumbs up and a sinister smile. I turned to go down the line of my supporters. I shook a couple of the guys from the gym's hands and made my way to Hodge. He shook my hand and pulled me in for a man hug.

"Remember," he shouted into my ear so I could hear him over the music. "This is your fight. Don't let him have it. You control it."

I nodded and he slapped me on the back. Last in my line was Simon, my best friend. We always said the same thing to each other before a fight and it always made me laugh.

"Don't lose, jackass," he said as he shook my hand and we hugged. I nodded and turned before he took both hands and slapped me hard on the back. I really don't understand why we always do that, but the adrenaline is pumping so much that I couldn't feel it.

The door to the cage opened and I jogged up the steps before hopping around the ring and stopping in my corner. Hodge and Simon were behind me, hanging over the edge of the ring and shouting at me, but I couldn't hear them. The second I stepped in the ring, the only thing I was focused on was beating the shit out of the guy standing across from me. The announcer went through the typical introductions and the referee called us to the center. He explained the rules and asked if we understood. We touched gloves and backed back into our corners. All I could hear was white noise, but when the referee slapped his hands together in the center of the ring, I knew what he was saying.

I advanced to the center of the ring meeting my opponent half way. My hands were raised and I was bouncing on the balls of my feet. I never threw the first punch and I wasn't going to tonight. When he threw his first punch, I leaned away from his fist and my right fist connected with his ribs. I snapped back to prepare for his counter attack. He dropped his torso to try to take me down. I sprawled my legs to defend myself and ended up taking him down. I glanced at the clock and noticed that there were only thirty seconds left in the round. I wasn't going to win this fight in thirty seconds, so I maintained control and defended myself against his punches until the referee pulled us apart.

When I made it back to my corner, Simon was standing behind a stool where I sat down and Hodge was kneeling in front of me, shouting encouragements and suggestions. I wasn't tired at all and could make it the next four rounds with no problem, but I was definitely going to be ending this fight before that happened. After the minute was up, Simon and Hodge took the stool and left me in the ring.

Once again, I met my opponent in the middle of the ring. This time, I made the first move, wrapping my arms around his torso, picking him up and throwing him to the ground where I hovered over him raining punches until I flipped us so he was on top.

I tried to get him in a triangle chokehold where I lock my legs around one of his arms and head to try and get him to submit, but he never gave me enough room to do it. I switched my tactics when I started throwing punches into his temple. Just as I was going to execute a new plan, the referee pulled us apart as the second round ended.

Simon and Hodge were back in the ring and I sat down again. Instead of listening to Hodge, I searched the stands for Clary. Her red hair wasn't hard to find and she was sunk deep into her seat with one hand covering her face. Isabelle had her arm around Clary's shoulder and I was glad they had each other for when Simon and I were fighting. I knew it was extremely difficult for them to watch us fight, but we loved having them there.

"Simon, you know what you have to do, right," I asked Simon as he made his way out of the ring.

"Yeah, just end this," he said before the door closed on him.

I looked across the ring at my opponent. He was hurt, that much I could tell. His eye was swelling and turning purple while the other eye had a nasty gash above it. I knew I could end this with a perfectly placed punch. As much as I loved to win fights by tap out, I needed this fight to end now. I had things I needed to do that involved a feisty redhead.

When we met in the middle of the ring once again, he threw a punch that connected with my jaw. It definitely rocked me, but I brushed it off and threw my fist into the body across from me. I landed a combination to his body. He bent over and I thought I might have broken a rib. In his moment of weakness, I threw my left hand into his temple, a perfectly placed punch. He fell immediately down to the ground. He was out, but the instinct is to fall on top of him and rain down punches. Since I knew he was out, I hit him a little lighter than normal until the referee pulled me off of him.

I raised my hands over my head in victory and climbed to the top of the cage where I found Clary and pointed to her. She smiled brightly and waved as she screamed and clapped. I could see her mouth, "I love you." I gave her a nod and got down from the cage. I couldn't wait to have her in my arms. This after fight process couldn't be over with sooner.

Making my way over to where my opponent was laying on the ground, now awake, I leaned down to shake his hand. When the doctor gave the all clear, I helped him up and over to the center of the ring where the referee and announcer were waiting for us. I made sure the guy was steady on one side of the referee before I took my spot on the other side. The referee held our wrists waiting for the official decision.

"This fight was stopped with four minutes left in the third round," the announcer explained. "Making the winner and champion by knockout, Jace 'The Angel' Herondale!"

The referee raised my hand and I felt the belt go around my waist. I looked down and felt pride rush through me. When I glanced up into the stands, I saw Simon pulling Clary and Isabelle down to the ring like he was supposed to. I smiled and looked at the ringside commentator who was waiting to interview me. I gave him a nod and he nodded back knowing what I was asking.

"The Angel is back," he shouted into his microphone and I chuckled. "Seriously, Jace, it's good to see you back in the octagon and looking better than ever."

"Thanks, man," I said with a smile. "I've had a tough year, but it just made me work that much harder to put this belt back where it belongs."

"What was your plan going into this fight?"

"I just went with the flow. I let him take the lead. If he wanted to be on the ground, I would work with it, but he stayed on his feet and I matched him blow for blow."

"You certainly did. Take a look at this hit and walk us through it." He pointed at the screen, which was playing a slow motion shot of the fight ending hit. I smiled as I watched the fight end the way I wanted it to.

"I just saw an opening and took it. I knew he was hurt so I took advantage of that and ended it. He fought a good fight and I respect him so much."

I saw Clary out of the corner of my eye and could see that she was confused. Girlfriends don't usually go into ring, even after fights, so I turned to her and shot her a reassuring smile. I glanced at Simon who gave me a nod, signaling that everything was ready.

"Before we go any further, I need to do something," I said to the interviewer. He nodded and followed me as I made my way to Clary. She looked nervous and her cheeks were red. I took her hands and looked her in the eyes, gold and green meeting. The interviewer held the microphone up to my mouth so what I was about to say would be heard around the world.

"Red," I began and she smiled. I could see the tears already forming in her eyes as I continued. "Fifteen months ago, I sat down next to you after defending my title for the fourth time and nothing in my life has ever been the same. I fell in love with a fiery redhead who loves to take pictures and loves me back. You've changed my life for the better and I don't know where I would be today, if it weren't for you. I probably wouldn't be standing here, that's for sure." Simon handed me the ring and I got down on one knee. Clary's hand flew up to her mouth as she gasped. "I have wanted to do this for a year, but the timing was never right. You are my best friend, my partner, my love. Clarissa Fray, will you marry me?"

She nodded excitedly and lowered her hand. The interviewer put the microphone in her face and she glanced at it before screaming, "Yes!"

I jumped up as she threw herself into my arms and I lifted her off of her feet. Her legs wrapped around my waist and I could feel her shaking with tears. She pulled her face out of my shoulder and looked into my eyes before crashing her mouth against mine. Somewhere in the distance, there was cheering and congratulations, but I couldn't hear anything when my girl was kissing me like that. She pulled away and quickly whispered, "I love you." I pulled back before I quickly slid the ring on her finger, making it official and slammed my lips against hers again.

If anyone was expecting me to put her down or talk to them, they were going to be very disappointed because I was planning on never letting her go.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: :) Thanks for reading! This is probably my favorite chapter and I loved writing it. It was surprisingly easy to write and I hope you enjoyed it. This is how I planned the proposal to happen a long time ago, but when I write, I write in stream of consciousness so things happened that I didn't plan and this had to be pushed back. I hope it was worth the wait! This was also supposed the be the last chapter, but I have more that I need to happen in this story because I want to write a sequel to this story that is set sixteen years later! So, yay for more chapters! There will probably be three or four more chapters before the epilogue! **

**So, leave a review and keep reading! :)**


	26. Chapter 26

"Are you happy," Jace whispered into my hair. Somehow, we made it home after the fight, which was weird because we were staying in a hotel, but I've decided to not ask questions. We were lying in bed the morning after the fight and I hadn't slept at all the night before. I was too excited. This amazing man just asked me to be his wife and he was asking if I was happy. Of course, I was happy! Nothing in the world could have made me happier.

"Are you kidding," I lifted myself onto my elbow so I was looking down at him. My god, he was beautiful. A beautiful man and he was all mine. "I never knew love could be like this. I didn't know what it was like to be so in love that the thought of not being with the other person made it hard to breath. All I ever wanted was to have a life with you and you've given it to me. I'm happier than I've ever been and I love you."

Jace pulled me so I was lying on top of him. "I love you, too. So much." Then, he kissed me. Even after all this time, every time Jace kissed me felt like the first time. He ignited a spark in me that I couldn't explain, nor did I want to. There was never any doubt that he was the one that I would spend the rest of my life with. He was my tough guy in the ring, he beat people up for a living, but with me, he was the most loving, caring and thoughtful person I knew. I couldn't wait to spend the rest of my life with him.

o.0.O.0.o

"Shit." I was pacing in my bathroom with an extremely pregnant Isabelle sitting on the bathtub. "Shit, shit, shit!"

I threw my hands in my hair and tried to keep from crying. I rocked back and forth on my heels and looked at Isabelle who was pressing on her stomach and grimacing. She was very close to her due date and the baby was kicking her constantly and basically giving her a hard time.

"Clary, please calm down," she pleaded. "It's not that big of a deal."

I sat down next to her on the bathtub and leaned my head against her shoulder. She wrapped an arm around my shoulder and rubbed my arm.

"I'm supposed to be getting married in six months. How am I going to fit into a dress? What if Jace doesn't want to have children right now? There are just so many things going through my mind right now. What if I'm a bad mom?"

"Okay, first of all, don't even think like that. You are going to be an amazing mother and Jace is going to be an awesome father. Second, stop worrying, you haven't even looked at the test yet. As for your wedding, you might need to push it up or push it back if you don't want to look pregnant, but that's not a big deal."

"I just wanted everything to be perfect."

"I know." We were quiet for a minute. "Why don't you look at the test?"

"I can't. Can you do it?" She nodded and waddled over to the counter where the test was waiting. She picked it up and I could see her expression in the mirror. She was smiling brightly and, was that a tear I saw running down her cheek? Isabelle turned with the test in her hand and showed it to me.

"Two lines."

I'm pregnant. She handed me the test and I stared at it as I started crying. They were happy tears, though. Every fear I had completely melted away in that moment. I knew Jace would be an amazing father and I suddenly didn't care if the timing was off. I loved the little human growing inside of me.

"I need to get to the gym." I shot up from my seat and rushed into the bedroom. I didn't bother changing out of my yoga pants and sweatshirt, this was too important. Izzy was clapping and cheering behind me and I was worried for a millisecond that she might go into labor.

I grabbed my wallet and keys and headed out to my car. Isabelle sat in the passenger seat while I drove. The whole way to the gym, I chewed nervously on my nails. Izzy was constantly pushing on her stomach and singing along with whatever song was on the radio. The drive went by fast and before I knew it, we were pulling up to the gym.

Simon must have seen us pull up because he was out the door and helping Isabelle out of the car. When she was on the ground, she lunged forward and kissed him deeply. I laughed at them as I walked into the gym. Jace was standing on the edge of the mat and watching the kids roll around. I walked up behind him and wrapped my arms around his waist. I planted small kisses on his back and felt him take a deep breath.

"If you don't stop, I won't be held responsible for what I might do to you," he teased as I buried my face between his shoulder blades.

I reached up on my toes to whisper in his ear, "Come to your office."

He turned to face me with a wicked smile. Simon came in holding Isabelle's hand and they were both smiling like idiots. That girl couldn't keep a secret to save her life. I took Jace's hand, shaking my head and led him to his office. Once inside, I walked around the desk and motioned for Jace to sit down. I took my spot on his lap and wrapped my arms around his neck. In true Jace fashion, he kissed me long and hard. I almost forgot why I was there and snapped back, holding him back with a hand on his chest.

"Jace, I need to tell you something," I said breathlessly. He took my left hand and kissed the ring he had put there a few months before. He always did that and it gave me the chills every time.

"Okay, you're starting to worry me," he said after I was quiet for a minute.

"Um, I don't know if I can marry you in January."

"Okay, so when would you rather get married?" He looked confused and I didn't blame him. I was confused, as well.

"I don't know, but it can't be in the next nine months."

"Why not?" Oh, he was so clueless.

"Because I want to actually fit into my wedding dress."

"Why wouldn't you…" He trailed off and I raised my eyebrows. "Are you…Are we…"

I nodded my head and took his hand to place it on my belly. There was nothing there, but he understood. He closed his eyes and I was starting to freak out when he didn't say anything. Just when I was about to hop off of his lap and thoroughly freak out, his eyes snapped open and he slammed his mouth against mine. I pulled him closer and lost myself in his kiss. When he deepened the kiss, I let out a small moan.

"I love you, so much," he whispered against my lips. "When did you find out?"

"About an hour ago. I wanted to take the test with you, but I was so nervous and I just needed to know. Are you happy?"

"This is the best moment of my life, aside from you agreeing to be my wife." I giggled and nuzzled into his neck. "So, we can't get married until after the baby comes?"

"Well, I don't want to look like a beached whale at my wedding."

"What if we got married today?" I pushed up from his chest and looked down at him.

"You mean elope?" He nodded with a twinkle in his eye. I thought about it for a minute and realized I didn't want to not be married when our baby came into the world and I didn't want to spend another minute not being Mrs. Herondale. "The courthouse closes in an hour. Get Simon and Isabelle so they can be witnesses. My dress is at the studio. Let's go!"

Jace kissed me once before I jumped off of him and ran next door. I could hear Isabelle's squeals and assumed Jace had told them. I ran to my office where there was a closet that held my camera equipment. In the back was a garment bag hanging that held my dress. The dress was the first thing we found when it came to planning the wedding. It was beautiful, just a flowing ethereal white gown with an empire waist and an embroidered bodice. I couldn't wait to put it on.

Once I had the bag in hand, I ran out the front door, locked the door and found Jace, Simon and Isabelle standing next to Jace's truck. Why we were all going to pile into his truck was beyond me, but I didn't really care because I was about to marry the man of my dreams, my baby's father, my heart.

We made it to the courthouse in record time. Jace and Simon took care of getting the marriage license and finding a judge to marry us while Isabelle and I found a bathroom where I could change. I didn't care about the flowers or the music or really anything else. All I needed for my wedding day was Jace and my dress.

Once I had my dress on, Isabelle couldn't hold back the tears. We hugged for a long while before Simon knocked on the door and said they were ready for us. Simon led us to a room where Jace was waiting. I noticed that Simon had changed out of his gym clothes and was wearing dark jeans, a nice button up shirt and a tie. Standing outside the room, I remembered that I didn't grab the wedding bands, the second thing we had bought for the wedding.

"Don't worry," Simon said. "I grabbed them from the safe in Jace's office before we left." He held up Jace's wedding band and handed it to Isabelle so she could give it to me during the ceremony. I hugged Simon tightly before letting him go to stand by Jace's side.

I took a deep breath and the doors opened. There wasn't an aisle, but it didn't matter. Jace was still standing at the end of the room in an outfit similar to Simon's and his expression melted my heart. We smiled at each other as I entered the room and came to stand beside him in front of the judge. Jace took my hand and kissed my cheek before whispering, "You are beautiful."

The judge began the generic ceremony, which still felt like a dream come true. Jace and I repeated the vows and never lost eye contact with each other. When it came time for the rings, we both said, "I do" and slipped our wedding bands on each other's finger. After that, I just wanted to get the rest over with. The judge finally pronounced us man and wife and Jace pulled me to him so he could kiss the crap out of me. I don't know if he was doing it on purpose, but his left hand was resting on my belly as he kissed me.

Simon and Isabelle were clapping and cheering around us. When we broke our kiss, we turned to our best friends to thank them and I hugged Isabelle. We were both crying. It was the simplest ceremony you could possibly have, but it was perfect.

Jace scooped me up in his arms and I wrapped my arms around his neck resting my head on his shoulder.

"Take me home, Mr. Herondale," I said as we reached his truck.

"With pleasure, Mrs. Herondale."

* * *

><p>:)<p> 


	27. Chapter 27

"Jace," I whispered against Jace's face peppering his cheeks and lips with kisses as I tried to wake him up. "Wake up, baby." His eyes fluttered open and his smile almost blinded me. I kissed his perfect lips before he could say anything.

"Good morning, Red," he said holding me to his chest. I pushed off of him and stood next to the bed so he could see my profile.

"Look." I lifted up my shirt so my belly was showing. "Don't I look bigger?"

"Is that a trick question?" He was leaning on his side smirking and scratching his head.

"No, it's not a trick question. I just want to know if you can tell that I'm pregnant yet." Jace got up from the bed and wrapped his arms around me resting his hands on my belly.

"I think you look more beautiful than ever." He kissed my temple and squeezed me tight before making his way to the bathroom to shower.

"That's not answering my question, Jace." I huffed as I stood in the doorway of the bathroom. "Just tell me I look fat."

"Yeah, that's not going to happen." I looked down at my stomach and there was definitely something there, but it might have just looked like I had eaten too much the night before.

"Fine, next time you ask me if your biceps got bigger, I'll just avoid the question." Jace threw his head back and laughed before dropping a kiss on the top of my head. He bent down so his face was level with my stomach and kissed it before talking to the baby. He insisted that the baby needed to learn his voice so he would know whom his daddy was.

"Your mom is crazy, little guy, but I love her and I love you." My eyes filled with tears. Stupid hormones. "I need to get in the shower so we won't be late."

I nodded as he turned to get in the shower. Today we were going for my twenty-week appointment where we would find out the sex of the baby. I thought it was a boy and Jace refused to predict what it was.

"I told Isabelle we would stop by after our appointment to see the baby," I yelled toward the bathroom. Jace grunted in response, which I took as approval. Either way, we were going.

Isabelle and Simon welcomed their daughter, Tessa, into the world three weeks before. It was truly amazing watching our best friends make the transformation into parents and it made us even more excited for our child to arrive.

After I got dressed and ready, I patiently waited downstairs for Jace to be ready. It would take us at least half an hour to get to the doctor's office and I was extremely anxious to get there. I was about to leave without him when he sauntered down the staircase and met me by the door with a kiss.

"You really aren't going to guess what it is," I asked as I glanced down at my belly. His hand covered mine as he leaned in to kiss my cheek.

"No, because I don't care what it is as long as it's healthy and ours," he whispered.

"You're so lame." I took his hand and dragged him toward the garage so we could leave. He helped me into the car even though I thought he was being ridiculous and I didn't need help.

Jace went around to the driver's side and buckled himself in before starting the car and backing out of the garage. I plugged my phone in to his radio and started playing my music. He looked over to me and gave me a questioning look when a Linkin Park song came on.

"Since when do you listen to my kind of music," he asked looking back and forth between the road and me.

"Since I was in the gym and felt the baby move like crazy last week. He likes your music."

He reached over and rested his hand on my stomach. I'm pretty sure that was his new favorite part of me. Instead of holding my hand, he would hold my belly, like he was making sure we were all together.

When we pulled into a parking spot at the doctor's office, I jumped out of the truck immediately and started speed walking toward the entrance, not bothering to wait for Jace. I was too excited. I had no idea how people could be surprised about the sex of their babies. I wanted to know what I was having the second I found out I was pregnant. I'm just not a patient person. Apparently, Jace didn't care so I'm sure he could have waited, but I wanted to know now.

"Hey, Speed Racer, hold up," Jace shouted as he grabbed my arm, pulling me to a stop outside the front door. "Can you just slow down for a second? I want to savor this moment, okay?"

"Fine, but I just really want to know what we're having."

"I know, me too." He pulled me into his arms and held me for a minute before taking a deep breath and opening the door for me to go inside.

After we checked in, it seemed like we waited for years for our names to be called. When they were, I jumped out of my seat, accidentally elbowing Jace in the side of his head with excitement. He yelped and I threw my hands to cover my face in embarrassment. He laughed it off and pulled me into his side to lead me toward the nurse who would take us to the examination room. I leaned up and kissed the side of his head, making the injury all better, I'm sure.

As we waited for the doctor to come in, I put on the robe they provided and sat on the edge of the exam table while Jace sat on the chair next to me. I held his hand in both of mine and rested them on my lap. He squeezed my hands forcing me to look at him and when I did, he had the most beautiful smile on his face as he winked at me. He was perfect.

The doctor came in and did some measurements before asking if we would like to know what we were having.

"Yes," I almost yelled and the doctor and Jace both stifled laughs as she turned the sonogram machine on.

She squirted some goo on my stomach that made me flinch from it's coldness and maneuvered the wand on my stomach to try and get the best view of our baby. She did this for a few minutes before I started to freak out. Before I could ask any questions, she pointed to the screen to show us where the baby was.

"This right here is your baby," she said softly as she moved the wand again. "And if I can get the right angel, we can see what we're having." Some more movements before she stopped the wand, pressed a button on the machine and froze the image. "Congratulations, it's a boy."

I smiled widely because I was right and the tears that filled my eyes flowed freely. Jace's hand tightened on mine and I looked over to him. The doctor excused herself and told us to take all the time we needed. As soon as the door closed and before I could say anything, Jace's lips were on mine. He held the back of my neck in his hand holding me to him. My lips moved against his and my tears mixed in with our kisses.

When we finally pulled away, we were both breathless and laughing. Jace rested his forehead against mine and kissed the tip of my nose.

"God, I love you, so much," he whispered as his breaths hit my face. "Let's get out of here."

I nodded and he helped me up from the table before I got dressed and followed him out of the office. I made my next appointment and before I knew it, we were in the car on our way to Isabelle's house. He held my hand across the console and I couldn't stop staring at him with his beautiful smile that never left his face.

We were going to have a son; a son that I hoped would grow up to be just like his father.

"Did you really not have a preference of what we had," I asked with an accusatory tone in my voice.

"Open up the glove box," he said with a tilt of his head in the direction of the glove box.

When I opened it, I saw two tiny little gloves, small enough for a toddler. I knew it. He totally wanted a boy, but was being all sensitive saying he didn't care either way. He wanted a little boy running around the gym as much as I did.

"Are these MMA gloves for a toddler," I asked looking over to him. He laughed and reached over to take one.

"You've got to start them young," he replied staring at the tiny glove that barely fit on his finger.

"I knew you wanted a boy!" I pointed an accusing finger at him and he feigned shock.

"How dare you. Those gloves could be for a girl, too. Not that I would ever let my daughter fight, but still."

"You're so cute, Jace Herondale."

"I know."

"Oh, there's the confidence I know and love." We laughed together as Jace pulled into Simon and Isabelle's driveway. After Jace turned the engine off, we sat in the car for a moment, letting the events of the day sink in.

We were going to have a baby. A son. We were going to have this little, tiny life that depended on us for it's life and I couldn't be more excited.

"Should we tell Isabelle that we're having a boy," Jace asked as we got out of the truck. He pulled me to him so he could hold my hand and rest his other hand on my belly.

"Are you kidding," I said waving him off. "She'll be ridiculously excited claiming that Tessa and our boy will be best friends before they fall madly in love and get married making us in-laws. She'll have the whole wedding planned before the baby is even born."

"You're right. Her head might explode. This should be fun."

We laughed as we used our key to their house to let ourselves inside. Why we used the key, I still didn't know. If I had a dollar for every time we walked in on them being romantic on the couch or kitchen counter or entryway floor, I would be a rich woman. We made as little noise as possible in case Tessa was asleep. Whoever woke Tessa up immediately declared they had a death wish. Isabelle and Simon were sleep deprived and generally cranky.

As we rounded the corner to enter the living room, we saw the most adorable sight in the world. Simon and Isabelle were sleeping with their heads leaning against each other. Tessa was asleep in between them and each of them was holding one of Tessa's hands. I immediately wished I had my camera with me. Luckily, I always kept a point-and-shoot in my purse.

I didn't want to wake them up, so I made my way to Isabelle's office with Jace following me. I printed out the picture and left it on their kitchen counter with a note saying we were there and we would see them later. We locked the door behind us and made our way home.

Sometimes, I can't believe this is my life. I'm married to the love of my life and having his son. Our best friends have found a meaning to life in their daughter and we all lived this magnificent life that I couldn't have dreamed up if I tried. All of my dreams had come true and then some. Jace made my dreams come true and made me believe that I deserved the life he gave me.

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><p><em>AN: Thanks for reading! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter and I hope you liked it as well. So, I'm thinking two more chapters before the epilogue, which will lead in to the sequel. I have had the best time writing this fic and just realized that I started this in February and it's been an awesome couple of months. I can't thank you enough for your support through this and I'm so happy with how this story has been received. _

_From the bottom of my heart, thank you. _

_Let me know what you think, as always, because I love to hear from you! :)_

_P.S. I started another TMI fic yesterday, so check it out if you want to. It's called I left My Heart in the Ocean and I'm really excited about it! :)_


	28. Chapter 28

"What are you doing here," Jace asked as I waddled into the gym. He rushed to me placing his hands on my very large and very pregnant belly and kissing me sweetly. "You're supposed to be resting."

About two months before, it became apparent that my small frame was going to have a hard time carrying Jace's baby. The doctor told us that I should keep activity to a minimum if I wanted to carry our baby to term. Now, here I was a week past my due date and our son had decided he just didn't want to come out yet. I was done with being pregnant. I loved Jace and I loved our son, but he really just needed to hurry up and get out. My back hurt, my feet were ridiculously swollen and I looked like I swallowed a stability ball. My belly was humungous.

"Excuse me, but I wanted to see my husband and I can't stand being alone in that house anymore," I said as I pushed past Jace and headed over to the mats. Jace came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist putting his hands under my stomach, holding it and taking some of the pressure off of my back. I sighed at the relief. "Thank you."

"Feel better?" He kissed my temple and I closed my eyes and nodded. "Why don't I take you home and draw you a nice relaxing bath and cook you dinner."

"No, I came to watch the kids' class and take pictures." I motioned to my camera hanging off of my shoulder.

"Come on, Clary. Let's just go home." He started pulling me toward the door, but I stopped him.

"Jace Herondale, I have been stuck in that house for the majority of the past two months and I am going crazy. Your demon spawn won't get out of me and all I want to do is take some pictures to gain my sanity back. So, I will sit in that chair and I will take pictures and you will be happy about it or you can forget about ever seeing me naked again."

He laughed and pulled me into his arms, holding my head against his chest. "What am I going to do with you?"

"Let me take pictures. I just explained that." He put his hands on either side of my head and tilted it up so he could see me.

"I love you, Red." Our lips met in a soul-searing kiss that made me wish I wasn't ten months pregnant and about to pop. "Go sit down and take your pictures, but I will be drawing you a bath and I will be cooking you dinner when we get home."

"Deal." I kissed his cheek before waddling to the chair. About half way there, I felt a rush of water between my legs. I looked down at the puddle and froze. This was it. Our baby was finally coming, but when I opened my mouth to speak, nothing came out. I took a few cleansing breaths and turned to face Jace. "Honey, could you come over here for a second?"

Jace dropped whatever he was doing and ran over to me taking my hand and resting his other hand on my back. "What's wrong?" Concern written all over his face.

"Um, my water just broke." He looked down at the floor and noticed the puddle. "I think we need to go to the hospital." Jace sprung into action squatting and lifting me in his arms. "I can walk, Jace."

"Just let me have this, okay? I'll put you down when I know you're safe and in a hospital bed. Just let me be neurotic and paranoid right now."

I conceded and leaned my head against his shoulder as he shouted out orders to everyone in the gym. He told Simon to make sure everyone got picked up and to lock up the gym. Simon said he would let Isabelle know what was happening and he would meet us at the hospital. I was reluctant to let Isabelle come to the hospital when she had a six-month old baby to worry about, but Simon insisted that they had had a plan worked out for months. Hodge would take care of Tessa while we were all at the hospital and everything was going to work out.

When we finally made it to the door, Jace turned to face the gym and yelled, "I'm going to be a dad!" Everyone cheered and clapped as we pushed out the door and made our way to the truck. Luckily, Jace had had my hospital bag loaded and ready for weeks just in case we needed it. Jace buckled me into the front seat and ran around to the driver's side. Before he backed out of the parking lot, he turned to face me. He grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me to him to kiss me.

"We're having a baby," he whispered against my lips. When I opened my eyes, I saw a mixture of emotions flooding his eyes.

"We're going to be parents," I whispered back before I let the tears fall. I kissed him one last time before he started driving to the hospital.

I turned the radio on and listening to my Linkn Park playlist the entire way to the hospital. When we finally pulled up in front of the hospital after a twenty-minute drive, Jace pulled me out of the car and rushed me inside. He put me down only when a nurse told him I had to be in a wheelchair. I thought he was going to explode when she told him we needed to fill out some forms before she could get me in a room. I reached up and placed my hand on his arm, rubbing my thumb back and forth. That seemed to calm him as he took the clipboard from the nurse and filled the forms out in record time.

As soon as he handed the nurse the forms, she led us back to our room. I changed into a hospital gown and then another nurse inserted an IV and wrapped a fetal monitor around my stomach. We were told that my doctor had been contacted and that she would be there soon. The contractions, which had gotten stronger after my water broke, were now five minutes apart and I swear I almost broke Jace's hand each time from squeezing so hard.

I could see in his face how hard this was for him. He didn't like to see me in pain and he couldn't do anything about this. All he could do was hold my hand and try to talk me through it. He pushed my hair back from my forehead and kissed it and held my hand.

My doctor came in and checked to see how dilated I was and I was only five centimeters dilated which meant we still had some time. She asked me if I wanted an epidural when the time came.

"I have absolutely nothing to prove," I told her and Jace chuckled beside me. She nodded and left the room.

Simon and Isabelle came in the room shortly after and Isabelle threw her arms around me yammering about how awesome it was that our children were only a few months apart. She looked absolutely amazing after giving birth and it made me instantly jealous and worried that I might never look the way I used to. There's no way my skin could stretch so much and go back to normal. I pushed the thought aside for now and tried to determine what Isabelle was talking about. Finally, Simon put his hand over her mouth to silence her.

"She had coffee today for the first time in over a year," he explained. "She's a little wired."

I let out a deep belly laugh as another contraction hit. Searing pain ripped through my stomach as my abdomen tightened. Jace rubbed my back and held my hand while whispering into my hair. Things along the lines of, "you're beautiful" and "you amaze me."

Eight hours later, I had an epidural in my system and things were feeling good. I could still feel the contractions, but the pain was significantly more bearable. Jace sat or stood next to me, never leaving my side. The doctor came in again to check me and said I was finally completely dilated and that it was time to push.

Simon had left a while ago to take Tessa home because Hodge had called to say she felt a little sick. Isabelle was still in the room and I wasn't sure how to tell her that I only wanted Jace in the room while I gave birth. When the doctor asked whom I wanted in the room, I looked to Jace for help.

"Iz, get lost," he said as I smacked him. She glared at him and came to my side.

"I'm sorry, Iz," I whispered. "I just think I want this to be between Jace and me. Can you understand that?"

"I get it, hon," she said as she wrapped her arms around my shoulders. "Now, give me my future son-in-law."

I laughed as she made her way out of the room and my feet were put into stirrups.

_Oh, this should be fun._

Jace wrapped his arm around my shoulder to help me sit up and held my hand tight. The doctor instructed me on what to do and I followed her instructions as I pushed with all of my might. I screamed expletives toward Jace that I would have to apologize for later and slumped back against the headboard of the bed.

This process repeated for an hour before my doctor told me to give one more big push. Jace held me tight and I screamed bloody murder as I gave one more giant push. I felt a pressure release and heard my son cry.

The doctor held him up so I could see him and I couldn't stop the tears from falling. Jace pulled me against him and peppered my face with kisses whispering declarations of love with every kiss. When the doctor asked if he wanted to cut the chord, he stood up straight, nodded and took the scissors from her. She told him where to cut and he did before the nurses took our son to get cleaned up. Jace glanced at me and I knew he wanted to make sure our son was okay. I nodded, giving him permission to watch over him.

The nurse finally brought our boy over to me and placed him in my arms. Jace sat down next to me as I examined every feature of our perfect son's face. His hair was light and yellow just like I knew it would be. His eyes were blue, but Jace was convinced they would turn green like mine before long.

A steady stream of tears fell from my eyes as we experienced our first moments as a family. Jace ran his finger along our son's nose and he smiled. Jace kissed me deeply conveying everything he couldn't say in that moment.

"So, we have a son, but what is his name," Jace asked. We hadn't completely decided on a name and I knew I would just know when I saw him what his name would be.

"William," I said confidently as I glanced at Jace to see his reaction.

"William Herondale. It's perfect." He leaned down to kiss me. "He's perfect." Kiss. "You're perfect."

"You're not so bad, yourself."

William had fallen asleep so we stared shamelessly at his perfect little face. We had a lot of dreams wrapped up in this little bundle of joy. I immediately started thinking of all of the firsts we would get to experience with him. His first words, first steps, first heartbreak. This little person was going to be stuck with us for the rest of his life and I just hoped we could live up to his expectations.

I hoped he would find someone in this world who would make him as happy as his father had made me. I hoped he would be strong and brave like his father, but also sensitive and caring.

I didn't think it was possible to love someone more that I loved Jace, but looking at William, my son who I carried for ten months, I realized that I would love him unconditionally until the day I died.

Jace and I finally gave in to the exhaustion and fell asleep with William in our arms. There was no doubt in my mind that this child would grow up knowing and experiencing love because love is, after all, the most powerful thing in life.

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><p><em>AN: Thank you s much for reading! Don't get mad at me, but this is the final chapter. There will be an epilogue that I will probably post later today that will lead into the sequel like I said. I would just like to say how much I've enjoyed writing this story for all of you and watching it evolve from my first little idea I had into this story that I am so proud of. I can't thank you enough for the support and all of the kind words in the reviews and otherwise. I'm going to stop writing before I start crying, but just know that this story and all of you mean so much to me! :)_


	29. Epilogue: Will (Sixteen Years Later)

_Will_

_Sixteen Years Later_

When your dad is an MMA legend, there's a lot to live up to. I knew when I was five years old that I wanted to be just like my dad. I used to watch him at the gym training with my Uncle Simon and think they were superheroes and what five year old doesn't want to be a super hero?

I'm only sixteen and not even eligible for professional fights, but there are already people trying to predict if I'll be able to live up to my dad's standards. Dad never pushed me into anything though. Growing up, he used to tell me that I didn't have to fight, that people would expect me to be great because he was and if I didn't want that, I didn't have to. Every time, though, I would tell him that I was up for the challenge.

Dad stopped fighting professionally when I was ten. He broke his leg in a fight and decided it was time to stop. Now, he runs the gym full time and is my head trainer, kicking my ass in the process. He also does some scouting for the organization to find the next big fighter and does commentary work for big fights.

I'm not a mixed martial artist because it's what my dad did. I fight because it's what I love to do, even though my mom would rather me sit in her studio all day and help her take pictures. I'll leave that for my brother, James.

James is only fifteen months younger than me and has every bit of Mom's artistic ability. Dad always jokes that the blondes and the redheads formed teams early on. James and I share our mother's green eyes, though. My brother is my best friend; there is no doubt about that. I love that kid more than anything. He started high school this year and I love the fact that the Herondale boys are both there to cause trouble.

The Herondale and the Lewis kids joined forces a long time ago. There really isn't any time you can find any of us without the others. In fact, Tessa, who is six months older than me and won't let me forget it, is on her way to becoming the next big thing in female MMA. That was a fun conversation to be a part of. Tessa decided when we were twelve that she could be just as good, if not better than the boys. Our dads were so against it at first, not that they thought girls couldn't fight. They just didn't want to see Tessa get hurt.

Eventually, they agreed and Tessa and I have trained together ever since. Sometimes I wonder if she knows how I feel about her and she just chooses to ignore it. James says that I'm so obvious it's a wonder she hasn't called me out for being creepy yet. I can't help it though. I've known this girl for my whole life and she is my best friend. We tell each other everything and we understand each other.

Aunt Isabelle has even asked me why we don't date, but according to Mom, she had our wedding planned before I was even born. Everything is going to change tonight, though. Tonight I plan on making my feelings for Tessa known and I only hope she reciprocates my feelings and I don't ruin our friendship because without Tessa as my friend, I don't know what I would do.

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><p><em>AN: Once again, thank you for reading! I think I'm going to focus on my new fic for a few weeks before starting the sequel, but you know me, if the words start to flow, I'll post the first chapter as soon as it's ready. I think I said everything I wanted to say in the last chapter, but let me say thank you one more time! :)_


	30. Just an announcement!

**Hey everyone!**

**I just wanted to let anyone know who was interested that the sequel will be posted under a new name. It will be called ****_Continuing the Legacy _****and I will specify that it is the sequel to ****_It's Time_****. I am gong to post the first chapter later today, but I wanted you to know what it was going to be labeled as if you have been looking for it. **

**I'm pretty excited about this fic because I will be writing from all of their POVs. You will notice that the epilogue for ****_It's Time_**** is the first part of the first chapter, so I essentially had the epilogue really lead into the sequel. **

**Thank you so much to all of you for the amazing support on this fic and go check out the sequel and tell me what you think and if I should continue! **

**Love ya! :)**


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